#doq fic

[keeholover]

to presa aqui tá? MDS COMO EU QUERIA ELE PRA MIM

Oi amor, eu já amei seu blog viu? Perfeito!! 💖

Quando tiver um tempinho, faz algo com o taeyong na mesma vibe do smut do jeno, enemies to lovers??

Entre dançarinos rebeldes e bailarinas imperfeitas.

Gênero: Dancers AU! Enemies to lovers

Contagem de palavras: 1.8K

Esta fic contém: oral!masc, sexo sem proteção (NÃO FAÇAM ISSO), dirty talk, uso de apelidos como 'bonequinha' e 'gatinha'.

SINOPSE: Uma garota como você nunca ficaria com um garoto como ele, você e Taeyong são diferentes! Mesmo secretamente, pensando constantemente como seria ter ele com o corpo colado ao teu, Taeyong, o garoto mais insuportável da academia, pode te levar do céu ao inferno em segundos. “He wanted her, she'd never tell Secretly she wanted him as well But all of her friends stuck up their nose They had a problem with his baggy clothes”.

Após uma temporada de treinos na academia de dança, uma reunião foi marcada com todos os dançarinos para divulgarem as apresentações que marcariam o período antes das férias de verão. A proposta da diretoria surpreendeu a todos, seria uma performance nunca feita antes na academia. “Nossa proposta é unir todos por um motivo, celebrar todas as formas de dançar. Vamos unir todos os alunos para mostrar a todos que somos capazes de dançar os mais diversos estilos e ainda fazer uma ótima performance. Conversamos com os professores e iremos explicar mais coisas em breve. Qualquer dúvida que tiverem, podem tirar diretamente com os professores. Tenham uma boa tarde!”.

Os aplausos por parte dos alunos foram ouvidos, e logo todos se dispersaram para suas salas. Ainda estava meio confusa sobre, mas logo entendeu quando sua professora explicou mais a fundo. E para sua sorte (ou azar) teria um duo especial na noite da apresentação, com o garoto que mais odiava na academia inteira. Lee Taeyong, ou para os íntimos, TY. O dançarino de hip-hop mais irritante que já topou nos corredores. 

Ele era bom no que fazia e isso não era novidade pra ninguém, muito menos pra ele, que se gabava principalmente para te irritar. Vocês eram de mundos diferentes e isso dificultava a relação dos dois. Tinha a teoria de que os professores decidiram isso por estarem cansados de tantas implicâncias, ele sendo um rebelde skatista irritante, que escuta músicas barulhentas nunca vai se dar bem com alguém como você, perfeita, delicada.

Passou a aula inteira tentando convencer sua professora. Mas nada foi feito, cogitou ir até a diretoria, mas sabia que iria arrumar problemas e teria que ouvir toda aquela baboseira de unir os mundos novamente.

 No dia seguinte, lá estava ele, calças rasgadas, uma regata e botas brilhantes. Entrando na sala como se fosse a casa dele, junto com o professor de hip-hop que trabalharia junto com a sua. “Vamos dar um tempo para vocês conversarem um pouquinho, sem brigas, ok? Podem começar o aquecimento que vamos pegar os materiais e já voltamos.” Ditou Yoona, a professora de ballet. Que logo saiu da sala, deixando ambos sozinhos. 

Como era um dia atípico, vestia uma blusa de mangas compridas e um short levinho, o cabelo estava bem preso em um coque, com uma fita rosada envolta. 

— Eai, gatinha!

Um suspiro saiu de seus lábios, não estava afim de falar com ele agora. E sinceramente só torcia para os professores voltarem logo. Como forma de distração, passou a sentar e começar seus alongamentos.

— Qual foi, vai falar comigo não? O gato comeu sua língua? — Cutucou, se aproximando e sentando ao seu lado. — Cê ouviu a professora, precisamos nos entrosar para celebrar todas as formas de dançar!

Irritante.

— Isso tudo é uma baboseira, eu não quero falar com você Taeyong.

— E o que eu te fiz, hein? 

— Nasceu. — Revirou os olhos, como uma criancinha.

— Sabe que ser mimada desse jeito só vai dificultar as coisas, pô. Tô querendo ser legal com você! — Ditou com um biquinho, te cutucando com o cotovelo para chamar a sua atenção. 

— Tá, tudo bem. Mas isso não significa que eu vou ficar sendo legalzinha com você o tempo todo, ouviu?

Taeyong assentiu, feliz. Mas aquilo não durou muito tempo, minutos depois da professora entrar na sala e explicar o conceito da coreografia, já estavam discutindo novamente.

— Taeyong, que merda! Isso não é difícil! 

— Se não é difícil então faz você! E aliás, garotinhas como você não deveriam ter esse linguajar. 

— O QUÊ??? TAEYONG SEU IDIOTA! VAI SE FODER! — Logo, foi repreendidos por ambos os professores. 

“Sinceramente, se continuarem assim não vejo motivos para manterem vocês no duo, espero profundamente que melhorem o comportamento. Isso vale para os dois! Até lá, pensem sobre isso e repassem a coreografia vocês mesmos. Vamos ver como as outras turmas estão. Se eu ouvir mais alguma gritaria de vocês, vocês não participarão do festival.” A mulher ditou rígida, saindo da sala e batendo a porta, deixando os dois sozinhos novamente.

Você bufou, aquela era a oportunidade da sua vida para se promover a uma sala com habilidades maiores. E sabia que Taeyong também procurava isso, mas droga, porque ele tinha que ser tão insuportável?

— Qual teu problema comigo? — Taeyong questionou, de uma forma tão genuína que por um momento se sentiu extremamente mal.

— Você é irritante, exibido e sempre acha que o mundo gira ao seu redor.

— Você não precisa de tudo isso pra chamar minha atenção, garota. Já faz isso naturalmente, ou acha que eu sou idiota?

— Acho, você é um idiota.

— Porra, se cê quer dar cê fala. Só pedir meu número ou sei lá! Fica me tirando de maluco. Eu sei muito bem onde quer chegar com isso.

— Sinceramente? Estou perdendo tempo aqui, eu vou embora. — Você se virou para pegar suas coisas, mas logo deu de cara com um Taeyong perigosamente perto de você.

— Você não vai sair daqui enquanto não me dizer o que você quer de mim. — Ditou rígido, ele nunca havia falado contigo daquela forma. Você suspirou em derrota, não queria admitir isso em voz alta nem fodendo.

— Eu quero você, Taeyong. — Sussurrou, tão baixo que mal conseguiu ouvir, porém, com um Taeyong encarando seu rosto tão seriamente, era impossível não entender a mensagem.

— E evitou me dizer isso esse tempo todo? Porra… Demorou tudo isso porquê?

— Eu não sei, tá legal? Eu não sei! Que droga Taeyong, eu só quero ir embora! 

Você estava envergonhada, sentia a barriga revirar e as bochechas ficarem rubras. Quando Taeyong guiou seu corpo até a parede, colando seu corpo contra o dele e levando uma das mãos ao seu rosto, ficando tão próximos que conseguiam sentir a respiração um do outro.

— Você é muito marrentinha, garota. E se tem uma coisa que eu sei fazer é acabar com a marra de garotas como você. — Grunhiu, mesmo que quisesse ir embora, enchê-lo de tapas e xingar em todas as línguas que conhecia, sentiu um arrepio que foi logo percebido pelo Lee. — Mal comecei, gatinha… Já está assim?

Uma face de desdém se formou no rosto do Lee, que usou o polegar para desenhar o ínfero, acariciando devagar. Logo se aproximando e usando os dentes para mordiscar teu lábio. Colocou as mãos sobre o peitoral e suspirou baixo. Logo foi tomada para um beijo lento, preguiçoso. Aproveitou para tocar suas coxas, subindo para o bumbum e apertando a carne com força.

— Eu odeio o fato de você ser gostosa pra caralho, garota. Isso só me faz ter vontade de acabar contigo. — Sussurrou pertinho do ouvido, esfregando a pontinha do nariz no seu pescoço, inalando o cheirinho doce do perfume. — Acaba.

— O quê?

— Acaba comigo, Taeyong. Me destrua, me toque do jeito que você quer. — A frase soou doce, encarava o Lee com os olhinhos brilhando e as bochechas vermelhas. Aquilo foi o estopim, ele não conseguiria te ver implorando dessa forma tão descaradamente.

— Você é mais putinha do que eu pensava. Me pedindo desse jeito, não tem como recusar.

Ele te segurou no colo, caminhando em passos leves até a poltrona acolchoada que havia no canto da sala. Se sentou e te ajeitou no colo dele, voltando a beijá-la com devoção. Já você, se encaixava no colo dele e roçava contra a ereção masculina, arfando baixo enquanto sentia sua pele arder com os tapas que recebia. 

— Yong… Se nos pegarem aqui? 

— Se você ficar caladinha, não vão perceber. E outra, eles vão demorar até voltarem. Temos muito tempo ainda, meu bem. Não precisa ter pressa.

Os beijos foram descendo até o pescoço, deixando selares molhadinhos e tirando arfares dengosos de você. Até resolver se separar do maior, colocando os joelhos contra o chão e encarando o rosto do Lee com um biquinho. Levando as mãozinhas a calça do maior e esperando-o conceder a permissão. 

Assim que entendeu o que pretendia fazer, Taeyong assentiu com a cabeça e ajudou a descer a calça sobre as coxas, expondo o volume que saltou para fora, a cabeça rosada expelia pré-gozo e o comprimento te atraia de alguma forma, pensava em mil maneiras de tê-lo para si. 

Segurou o membro pela base e usou os lábios para acomodar a glande molhada, rodeando a língua e passando a sugar devagarzinho, adicionando o resto do membro na boquinha e fazendo movimentos de vai e vem, sentindo o homem colocar as mãos aos seus fios para guiá-la. Ia até o fundo, sentindo a pontinha encostar na garganta, maltratando sua boquinha várias vezes. Do jeitinho que ele gostava. 

— Garota… Puta merda! — O membro pulsava entre seus lábios, completamente molhado e ao ver seu rostinho inteiro vermelho, retirou da boquinha e rapidamente, puxou você para se colocar de pé. Descendo o shortinho devagar, observando o íntimo coberto pela calcinha, já molhadinha esperando por ele. — Vou te destruir, minha bonequinha. Te deixar toda bagunçada pra mim.

Sentou no colo dele novamente, suspirando dengosa ao sentir o polegar rodeando o pontinho. Arrastando a calcinha para o lado e colocando só a pontinha em seu íntimo, penetrando devagarzinho até o fundinho. Você choramingava baixinho com o pau te deixando cada vez mais larguinha. Iniciou movimentos lentos sobre o pau e agradeceu mentalmente, sua flexibilidade ajudava e muito. Apoiou os braços sobre os ombros largos do Lee, jogando a cabeça para trás e tentando controlar os gemidos.

— Shhh, fica quietinha, hm? Não quer que vejam você nesse estado, não é?

Assentiu, mordendo o lábio inferior e sentindo as mãos grandes apertarem sua cintura, erguendo a cintura em sintonia aos seus movimentos. Era acertada lá no fundo, tendo o pontinho roçar contra o membro alheio, tão molinha que tirou uma risada leve do Lee.

— Gostou, né? Tá gostando de ser fodida assim, hm? — Assentiu, frenética. Seus olhos se reviraram em deleite. A bagunça molhada era bombeada com tanta vontade que sentiu o corpo inteiro esquentar e a visão embaçar. Choramingando, sensível.

— Tão linda… Imagina se todos descobrissem a carinha de puta que você fica quando eu estou te fodendo assim, a garotinha perfeitinha virando minha bonequinha de foder…

Taeyong se divertia com suas reações, ora choramingando dengosa, ora pedindo por mais. Desceu as mãos ao íntimo e usou o polegar para estimular o clitóris. 

— Yong… Taeyong… Eu…

— Uh, vai gozar, gatinha? Então vem. Vem pro seu Yong.

Colocou uma das mãos sobre a boca para abafar os gemidos, rebolando contra o maior enquanto ele continua a atingir o ponto perfeito. Encarou-o com os olhinhos brilhantes e, finalmente, sentiu o maior se desfazer junto com você. Seu íntimo escorria e o maior preenchia seu canalzinho inteiro. 

Seu corpinho ficou mole, após ser atingida por um orgasmo intenso, deitou seu rosto sobre o peitoral do Lee, regulando a respiração aos poucos.

— Foi um ótimo aquecimento, não acha?

— Vai se foder, Lee Taeyong!

Nota da autora: Meu primeiro pedidoooo! 🥺🥺🥺 não sei se ficou do jeitinho que você imaginou, mas espero muito que goste, meu doce! <3 Tive essa ideia escutando a maior da minha diva Avril, sk8ter boi! achei que combinou com a vibezinha do ty que também é meu utt. Apesar de ser um fofo quis construir um personagem mais irritantezinho. Espero muito que tenha aproveitado a leitura.((seu blog também é maravilhoso, tô apaixonada!

[zelosnation]

amg vc acha q quando vc ‘mudou’ pro wattpad as visus das suas fics aumentaram doq quando vc estava no spirit?

no meu caso, eu comecei no wattpad, então as minhas views no wattpad sempre foram as mesmas desde que meio que explodi por conta de uma fic do Hongjoong em 2020 KKKKKK

então, tecnicamente, a pergunta para mim devia ser ao contrário, q é sim, mas somente nesta volta quando voltei, sou flopada no spirit, comparado ao wattpad eu sou bem flopada

[ariestess]

hi!! i adore your writing so much. i know it’s been a while since you’ve written dragon outlaw queen but they’ve been my obsession for the past month and i’ve re read every single one of your DOQ works (with some roni/weaver interludes when i discovered your fics for that ship). i was wondering if you’d ever write more DOQ smut? with subby regina? no pressure! i just love the way you write them lol.

OMG! Thank you so much for this msg! I am absolutely planning on writing more DOQ [and Roni/Weaver, fyi] in the future. In fact, I have a couple of DOQ prompts for Kinktober coming down the pike. I just need to get caught up to get to them. And yes, subby Regina will always be involved in my DOQ fics! LOL

[azulmiosotis]

prepare-se q a sua casa vai ser a segunda torre gêmeas e eu já mudei meu nome pra bin laden. é sério mano vsf q história TESUDAAAA valha-me nossa senhora (e me perdoe tbm pq né) cara vc me matou dms ele gozando nas calças só de dedar ela meu deus do céu meu santo cristo meu deus do céuuuuuu. e aí essa nota no final PUTA QUE O PARIUUUUU AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH durma hj sabendo q vc abalou mais a igreja católica c essa fic doq toda a reforma protestante. isso aq foi escrito pelo próprio diabo eu tô me sentindo como eva c a serpente mn

⭐️ forgive me father. fem!reader x enzo vogrincic

🪐 minha masterlist

» cw: smut! por favor só interaja se for +18! ; enzo!padre; infidelidade; angst + catholic gilt; fingering; masturb masculina + fem; sexo desprotegido; p in v; creampie; sexo num altar e na igreja (ops); nuances de strenght kink; enzo e leitora virgens então perda de virgindade.

» wn: omg debut solo do enzo nesse blog aqui!! e enzo!padre😯 pois é manas, call me camila creads fleabag da silva! pensei nessa ideia e depois de uma conversa com a minha querida amiga @lunitt decidi canetar!! gostaria de dizer que se alguém se sentir ofendida com esse tema religioso + culpa católica + pecados + sexo na igreja e com um fucking padre etc por favor não leia se não se sentir confortável com isso! apesar de isso se tratar de uma ficção, o tema abordado é um padre quebrando o celibato e se apaixonando, entawnnn essa é toda a trama desse one shot… mas enfim, não vou mentir, eu si diverti demais escrevendo essa 😛 espero que vocês gostem! 💞💐✨

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enzo!padre que tomou a decisão se ser devoto a religião ainda muito jovem. vindo de uma família religiosa, sempre soube a importância da fé e como seguir uma vida sagrada era um ato extremamente nobre. por mais que existissem as dificuldades, era feliz com sua decisão de ter se tornado padre, levava uma vida amena: todos os dias realizava missas e depois delas tinha a oportunidade de falar com os habitantes simpáticos da cidade pequena, foi assim que se tornou o padre favorito de várias senhorinhas, as quais em segredo sempre comentavam entre si o quão raro era ver um homem tão bonito quanto ele ser devoto apenas a sua fé.

enzo!padre que já estava acostumado com o carinho vindo das senhorinhas, tanto que reconhecia até a voz trêmula de cada idosinha na hora da confissão, conseguia identificar quem era quem apesar da madeira que separava as cabines e o impossibilitava de ver o rosto das fiéis. por isso estranhou tanto quando ouviu sua voz jovem do outro lado dizendo “Abençoa-me, Pai, porque pequei”.

enzo!padre que se esforçou para prosseguir com a confissão da mesma forma que sempre fazia, disfarçando o quando sua voz o afetou. procurou focar no que você dizia, prestando atenção em cada detalhe da história que você contava: que tinha se mudado recentemente para a cidadezinha da sua avó porque o filho de um homem importante tinha se interessado em ti, fazendo com que - de acordo com a sua família - a opção de negar o casamento nem existisse, e que talvez estivesse se precipitando pois tinha conhecido o garoto há apenas um mês, mas mesmo assim não enxergava se apaixonar por ele como algo possível.

enzo!padre que nunca tinha sentido esse frio na barriga por causa de alguém, e de forma alguma sabia como lidar com esse sentimento, não sabia o que fazer para desacelerar os batimentos quando você suspirava ou falava algo ainda mais meiga, com a voz trêmula e cheia de culpa. pior ainda quando decidiu se render aos olhos que queriam passear pela parede levemente transparente que separava vocês dois, observando com dificuldade o contorno do seu vestido branco e não conseguindo identificar se suas unhas estavam pintadas de rosa ou vermelho, mas conseguia ver perfeitamente seus dedinhos agitados que se moviam cada vez que falava, ou as palmas suadas deslizando pelo vestido curto.

enzo!padre que antes de dormir rezou uma, duas, três vezes, pedindo perdão por pela primeira vez na vida sentir tanta necessidade carnal, totalmente indevida para a sua carreira. se remexia na cama, a cabeça doía e o membro rígido entre suas pernas o incomodava mais ainda. se levantou para beber uma água, lavar o rosto, até decidiu fazer um chá enquanto perambulava pela cozinha, e enquanto a água fervia rezava com o terço em mãos, pedindo perdão e ajuda.

enzo!padre que, no dia seguinte, quase engasgou com a própria saliva quando novamente ouviu sua voz do outro lado da parede do confessionário. ainda com a cabeça ruim devido à noite mal dormida, passou as mãos nos olhos, mentalmente dizendo a Deus que já tinha entendido o recado, suplicando para Ele não puní-lo dessa forma.

enzo!padre que tinha que espantar os pensamentos intrusivos quando você repetia que não queria se casar com o ‘garoto de ouro’, pensando como você seria feliz em ser dele. desviava o olhar quando era atraído pelas suas mãos inquietas, e se repreendia quando pensava o quão macia seria a sensação delas passeando pela pele morena e intocada. pior ainda quando os olhos paravam na barra do seu vestido - dessa vez um tom de azul pastel - e o quanto um simples pedaço de tecido o causava tanta vontade de se enfiar por baixo dele, beijando o joelho exposto até a calcinha, imagem que ele inevitavelmente tinha criado na mente.

enzo!padre que te impediu de falar informações que entregariam a ele sua identidade, dizendo que as confissões sempre deveriam permanecer anônimas. apesar de ser verdade, o real motivo era que enzo já se sentia enlouquecido apenas com a imagem das suas mãos e o som da sua voz, tinha medo do que poderia acontecer com sua saúde mental se descobrisse seu nome, seu rosto, seu corpo.

enzo!padre que, nessa noite, ficou horas encarando o teto, recitando todas as orações que conhecia no quarto escuro para espantar os pensamentos sujos que vinham na cabeça. não acostumado com a sensação incômoda de ter uma ereção, lentamente desceu uma das mãos grandes pelo torso até chegar no membro duro coberto pela calça de pijama. sua intenção era de apenas aplicar uma pressão na região quente para aliviar a dor, mas o resultado foi completamente o oposto: os lábios inevitavelmente se partiram e puxaram um ar falhado. ainda por cima da calça, a mão deslizou pelo comprimento aplicando pressão e a mente foi diretamente a você: sua voz dizendo o nome dele ecoava dentro da cabeça, fazendo com que ele franzisse o cenho e apertasse ainda mais o membro que acabou de pulsar com a lembrança.

enzo!padre que não teve nem coragem de enfiar a mão por baixo do tecido, se ele não tocasse de fato no pau que com apenas com alguns minutos de estímulos liberou o líquido espesso e branquinho, talvez tudo isso seria menos pior, uma tentativa de burlar o pecado. depois de ter se esvaziado e ter feito uma bagunça na sua calça de pijama favorita, permaneceu de olhos fechados enquanto o peito subia e descia rapidamente.

enzo!padre que no dia seguinte anunciou na missa que o confessionário estaria suspenso por uma semana, com uma justificativa esparramada de que estaria atarefado com um projeto católico pessoal. sentiu até o peito pesar quando observou que as velhinhas se entreolharam e diziam “awn”, mencionando como ele era dedicado e um homem íntegro, quando o motivo verdadeiro era incrivelmente sujo, algo que elas nunca nem cogitariam que o padre enzo vogrincic pensaria.

enzo!padre que sentia como se estivesse no inferno durante essa semana, todas as noites acordando de madrugada depois de sonhar contigo: imaginando sua voz gemendo o nome dele, enquanto visualizava perfeitamente suas mãos ao redor do membro grosso.

enzo!padre que sentiu o coração parar de bater no dia que a velhinha, o filho do prefeito e a menina bonita sentaram no primeiro banco durante a missa, permitindo com que ele percebesse que a jovem tinha as mãos iguais a sua, também que o vestido era muito semelhante aos que você tinha usado durante as confissões, a forma que ela também mexia com os dedos - agora no anelar que tinha um anel de noivado - e parecia aflita, mordiscando os lábios ao vê-lo passear pelo altar. não, não podia ser… enzo pedia à Deus que não fosse você, rezava para que você fosse a mulher mais feia daquela igreja, não justamente o contrário.

enzo!padre que no final dessa missa, seguiu a moça bonita com o olhar enquanto criava justificativas e teorias para que você não fosse você. mas para a sua infelicidade, enquanto cumprimentava os fiéis na porta da igreja, sentiu os joelhos falharem quando ouviu a mesma voz doce que o assombrava desde a primeira vez que a escutou quando você disse “Paz de cristo, padre”. sua expressão era de quem tinha acabado de ver um fantasma, mas ainda bem que o seu noivo - alguns diriam extrovertido, outros metido - tomou a liberdade de o convidar para a festa que aconteceria na praça hoje à noite e falar que ele abençoasse e oficializasse seu casamento, fazendo enzo sentir um nó se formar na barriga, um sentimento novo para ele, que não conseguiu identificar que era inveja.

enzo!padre que demorou mais tempo do que deveria no banho, não fazendo as coisas sujas que o corpo desesperadamente necessitava ao pensar em você, e sim refletindo se realmente valia a pena abandonar todos seus princípios por alguém. mas porra, cada vez que pensava no fato de que você ficaria presa com esse homem para o resto da vida, quando ele poderia te oferecer tanto mais, poderia te fazer se apaixonar de fato por ele, poderia aprender como te satisfazer da maneira que você quer, da maneira que você merece. pensava se sua fé ainda estava intacta depois de você se tornar a maior devoção de enzo. não conseguia parar de pensar na forma como você o olhou, como o nome dele escapava dos seus lábios tão facilmente. a voz ecoava na mente já nublada de desejo, principalmente agora, que suas mãos inevitavelmente desceram até a ereção que palpitava toda vez que a imagem do seu rosto se contorcendo de prazer invadia a mente dele, decidindo se entregar ao pecado dessa vez, só dessa vez.

enzo!padre que decidiu não comparecer à festa da cidade que aconteceria essa noite, afinal, seria uma má ideia ir para o lugar que você estaria. por isso, depois do banho, foi em direção a igreja vazia e escura para acender uma vela enquanto tomava um chá, mas estranhou muito quando ouviu um barulho de uma mulher chorando. “olá?”, ele perguntou e ouviu a própria voz ecoar, pensou até que fosse mais uma peça que a sua mente estava pregando nele quando não obteve uma resposta e o choro baixinho não foi interrompido, mas depois de forçar um pouco a vista, percebeu que era você. sentada em um dos bancos centrais da igreja, acompanhava calada o homem que caminhava até ti, fungando e secando as lágrimas com um lencinho de pano.

enzo!padre que se sentou ao seu lado, por mais que você fosse a única coisa que o desviasse do caminho sagrado, não conseguia te ver nesse estado e não fazer nada. “desculpa, padre… eu achei que você não estaria acordado essas horas e… imaginei que vir aqui e rezar um pouco me faria bem…”, você disse entre soluços, o que fez enzo responder, “tá tudo bem… tem alguma coisa que eu possa fazer para te ajudar?”. você balançou um ‘não’ com a cabeça em resposta, ainda fungando o nariz e com os olhos molhados de lágrimas enquanto encarava o próprio colo. enzo se aproveitou da ausência da parede entre vocês para te observar atentamente: seu cenho franzido, como o peito subia e descia mais rápido que o normal, como você puxava as pelinhas no canto da unha, e mais rápido do que ele pudesse reagir, como tomou as mãos dele nas suas e pediu “ora comigo, padre? por favor…”

enzo!padre que rezou um ave maria contigo, e - por mais que estivesse atento demais na forma que o seu toque praticamente queimava a pele dele - quando você começou a chorar novamente antes mesmo da prece terminar, envolveu o braço ao redor do seu torso e sentiu o coração bater mais rápido quando você encostou seu rosto na curva do ombro dele. “shh… tá tudo bem…”, ele te confortava enquanto a mão grande fazia um carinho gentil no seu braço. “padre… eu preciso confessar…”, você sussurrou, tão baixinho que ele quase não escutou.

enzo!padre que quase desmaiou quando ouviu você dizer “ontem à noite… o meu noivo ficou até tarde em uma reunião, e eu me senti tão sozinha na cama, eu… pensei em alguém… e… me toquei… e eu sei, eu sei que é pecado… mas… foi tão…”. ele permaneceu completamente estático, não sabia o que dizer, principalmente quando você revelou que estava na mesma situação que ele: “eu sei que eu não deveria ter feito isso… e eu sei que a minha vida sexual só deve ser iniciada depois do casamento, mas… foi mais forte que eu… e agora, apesar de me sentir culpada, eu não consigo parar de pensar como foi… bom…”, você dizia em uma voz baixinha, com vergonha do que estava revelando.

enzo!padre que, por mais que soubesse que isso já passaria dos limites que a religião impõe, não segurou o pedido que saiu dos próprios lábios após alguns segundos de silêncio: “me mostra”. e quando você o olhou hesitante, ele segurou sua mão, te permitindo sentir a palma fria e suada, identificando que ele estava tão nervoso quanto você. as mãos entrelaçadas que estavam na altura dos peitos que subiam e desciam rapidamente desceram até o seu joelho exposto, e lentamente subiram até a pele da sua coxa que não estava coberta pelo vestido.

enzo!padre que encostou a testa na tua, e sussurrou “por favor…” depois de perceber que você estava ofegante que nem ele. você desentrelaçou os seus dedos nos dele, e ambos pensaram como esse era o momento perfeito de se levantar e ir embora, seria difícil fingir que nada aconteceu mas não seria pior do que pecar dentro da igreja. mas ambos estavam estáticos, não queriam deixar de sentir o ar que o outro liberava tão perto do próprio rosto, e muito menos deixar de fazer o que o corpo ansiou por tantas noites, então você segurou o pulso do homem e o guiou até a sua calcinha, fazendo com que os dois suspirassem ao sentir a mão grande encostando no tecido encharcado. ele inevitavelmente aplicou uma pressão por cima da calcinha branca, resultando em vocês dois exalando um ar entre os lábios em um formato perfeito de ‘o’ e, logo após, você movendo os dedos dele até o cós da peça íntima, permitindo que os dígitos explorassem as suas dobrinhas, a igreja estava tão quieta que era possível escutar apenas o barulhinho molhado e as respirações ofegantes.

enzo!padre que tomou a liberdade de fazer círculos com os quatro dedos que estavam dentro da calcinha - apenas o polegar estava para fora do tecido - e passavam pelo seu clitóris e perto da sua entradinha que já pulsava. “era assim… isso…”, você afirmava, o dizendo que o que ele fazia era exatamente o que você tinha feito. “enzo…”, ao gemer o nome dele, enzo voltou a realidade: percebeu que o que estava fazendo era completamente errado, mas, porra… o jeito que você gemia o nome dele, o jeito que seus olhos estavam cheinhos de lágrimas e desejo, o jeito que seus lábios estavam entrepartidos e mesmo assim segurava os gemidos, soltando um ar pesado pela boca. ele não conseguia parar, muito menos resistir, selou os lábios no seu. as línguas se esbarravam lentamente, sem nenhuma sincronização pois ambos já estavam perdidos demais no prazer, principalmente quando suas mãos pararam na coxa dele em um impulso, sentia que estavam perto demais de um orgasmo, “enzo… eu…”. “em quem… você pensou?”, ele te interrompeu, ofegante, fazendo você jogar a cabeça para trás ao ouvir a pergunta e apertar a coxa dele, perigosamente perto da virilha.

enzo!padre que quando ouviu você dizer “você… nisso… eu pensei nisso…” ofegante, não conseguiu controlar a resposta que o corpo deu. principalmente ao sentir você apertar a coxa dele mais forte para conter um gemido enquanto gozava, ele não teve outra opção a não ser se juntar a você, que de olhos fechados e com a cabeça para trás escutou um gemido falho e ofegante sair dos lábios do moreno, o qual apenas fechou os olhos que estavam fixados no seu rosto para se entregar completamente ao ápice de prazer que também se encontrava. enquanto você se acalmava do orgasmo, recuperou seus sentidos e conseguiu sentir a mancha melada que tinha se formado no tecido da túnica preta que ele usava. novamente, ambos estavam estáticos, ainda mais agora que o estrago já estava feito. mas dessa vez, antes que você pudesse falar qualquer coisa, enzo se levantou abruptamente e caminhou até seu aposento enquanto dizia “não volte mais aqui”. seus olhos seguiram a figura do homem que fechou a porta com tanta força que o barulho ecoou pela igreja escura e vazia, te deixando sozinha ali no banco, ainda incrédula com o que acabou de acontecer.

enzo!padre que, no dia seguinte, se sentia fora de si durante a missa. principalmente quando percebeu que você não estava ali, apenas seu noivo, o qual disse que a festa ontem à noite foi excelente, que ele deveria ter ido, e disse que sua futura esposa também não compareceu porque estava um pouco febril, mesmo motivo de não ter comparecido hoje de manhã. a resposta de enzo foi cheia de culpa, gaguejou ao dizer que iria orar por ela, algo que acabou passando despercebido pelo homem que não tinha a mínima ideia do que realmente se passou ontem à noite.

» oiee jah podi quebrar a quarta parede? 😛 só pra falar pra darem o play nessa música aqui pra ler esses próximos parágrafos 💞💐

enzo!padre que, essa noite, decidiu ignorar a ansiedade que sentia ao pisar na igreja escura, acendeu uma vela e logo após se ajoelhou em frente a escadinha em frente ao altar, rezando e pedindo perdão por ter desviado do caminho sagrado. enquanto orava, escutou um barulho de passos de saltinho. quanto mais alto o som, mais ele temia de ser quem ele desejava que fosse. quando ele percebeu que o barulho se cessou, hesitou em virar o olhar só acima do ombro, e quando fez isso, se deparou com sua figura parada no corredor entre os bancos, ainda distante dele. “não”, ele disse, ainda com os olhos em ti. “por favor…”, você suplicou, retomando a caminhada até o homem, o qual protestou novamente enquanto se levantava: “não”. “por favor…”, ele ao ouvir a súplica sair dos seus lábios novamente segurou a cruz do terço que tinha em mãos e o apontou para ti, “NÃO!”.

enzo!padre que queria correr de você como o diabo corria da cruz quando percebeu que você não se afastou, pelo contrário: se aproximou mais ainda, o olhando com o cenho franzido enquanto desfazia o laço do sobretudo que usava, finalmente expondo o vestido preto curto que vestia. mas enzo não conseguia se mover, por mais que os músculos do braço que erguiam a cruz falharam ao ver como a luz do luar que entrava pela janela da igreja te iluminava perfeitamente: realçando seu rosto e olhar repletos de desejo e como o vestido delineava as suas curvas. seus dedos subiram até o símbolo que te repreendia, segurou a mão que o terço envolvia e a guiou lentamente até o espaço entre seus seios, fazendo ele sentir como seu coração batia rápido. ele te encarava, a boca já estava seca e os pelos arrepiados só de estar na sua presença, principalmente agora em que os corpos estavam separados por apenas alguns centímetros de distância, mas não ousou em retirar a mão dali. você se aproximou mais do rosto do moreno, que agora tinha o cenho franzido que nem o seu e os lábios entreabertos numa tentativa de puxar mais ar para os pulmões, os narizes se encostaram quando você suplicou pela última vez: “por favor, padre…”.

enzo!padre que não conseguia pensar em nada mais além de você, e, por isso, selou os lábios nos seus de uma forma urgente, agressiva, até. as mãos grandes te puxavam para mais perto e simultaneamente apalpavam sua carne, te fazendo arfar dentro da boca do moreno enquanto as suas subiam até o os fios escuros e puxaram eles levemente. o beijo era desesperado, enzo desceu as palmas até a barra do seu vestido e segurou, puxando o tecido para cima e te deixando despida. ele tinha interrompido o beijo para que o vestido pudesse passar pela sua cabeça com facilidade, e antes que pudesse retomar, percebeu que você usava apenas uma calcinha e que seus seios estavam expostos, com os mamilos eriçados devido a brisa gelada que se chocou contra a pele pelando. os olhos passeavam pelo corpo que ele já tinha sonhado tantas vezes, hipnotizado como a realidade era melhor que qualquer produto do seu subconsciente, principalmente com você respirando ofegante que nem ele. você soltou um gemido falhado e ofegando quando enzo começou a beijar seu pescoço enquanto as mãos grandes passeavam pelas suas costas, e quanto mais os lábios desciam até seu colo, e depois para seus seios, as mãos também desciam até sua bunda e apertavam ela, com uma força que ele não tinha condições de medir agora.

enzo!padre que nem precisou te avisar para pular no colo dele quando te levantou do chão, você envolveu as pernas ao redor do quadril dele enquanto ele subia pelas escadinhas da plataforma que ele tanto profetizou as palavras da bíblia, caminhando até o altar enquanto os lábios não deixavam os seus e as palmas não deixavam de apertar suas coxas e sua bunda. ele te sentou na mesa e interrompeu o beijo para que pudessem respirar, mantendo o nariz encostado no teu. as mãos grandes subiram até seus seios e apertaram a carne macia, te fazendo arfar e chegar os quadris para frente, desesperada por qualquer estímulo. suas mãos desceram até a ereção do homem que voltou a te beijar desesperadamente, apertando levemente o membro e sussurrando contra os lábios dele dizendo “por favor…”, fazendo com que ele gemesse com os dentes cerrados e logo após enfiasse os dígitos dentro da sua calcinha, gemendo ao sentir o quão molhada você estava. ele tomou a liberdade de enfiar um dedo na sua entradinha apertada, a sensação nova com certeza doeria se você não estivesse completamente encharcada, mas mesmo assim você enfiou o rosto na curva do pescoço do moreno e deixou uma mordida ali para abafar um gemido, arrancando um dele.

enzo!padre que desesperadamente precisava estar dentro de ti, então quando você lambeu o pescoço dele até chegar ao lóbulo e gemeu “eu preciso… de você… por favor…”, retirou o dedo de dentro da sua entradinha e começou a levantar a bata que usava até os quadris, na altura suficiente apenas para liberar a ereção que doía, a outra mão se encarregava de retirar sua calcinha e jogá-la em um canto qualquer. as mãos grandes pararam na lateral do seu rosto, segurando firmemente enquanto te beijava de forma bagunçada, as línguas se esbarravam e vibravam quando gemiam um na boca do outro, enquanto a cabecinha suja de pré gozo deslizava livremente na parte interna da sua coxa, já molhada da sua própria excitação. você tomou liberdade de segurar o membro grosso que pulsava e guia-lo até sua buceta, esfregando a glande no buraquinho que queria engolir todo o comprimento logo, fazendo com que uma das mãos grandes de enzo parassem na sua nuca e apertassem ali, enquanto vocês gemiam com a sensação inédita.

enzo!padre que deixou você tomá-lo no seu tempo, o puxando pela bunda para que ele se enfiasse todo dentro de ti. e quando você afastou ele só para o puxar para mais perto de novo, instruindo ele a te fuder, os braços fortes cobertos pelas mangas pretas da vestimenta envolveram seu torso, enquanto a outra mão segurava sua nuca para que você não tirasse seus olhos do dele, que te encaravam os seus com desejo - algo que não se atreveria a fazer mesmo se ele não quisesse. as suas mãos puxavam o cabelo escuro a medida que ele saia e entrava em ti, a dor que sentiu por alguns instantes se transformou completamente em prazer, arrancando gemidos manhosos de você e que ficavam mais altos a cada barulho grave que saia da boca que beijava seu pescoço, seu queixo, sua bochecha e sua boca de forma desordenada. você envolveu suas pernas ao redor do quadril de enzo, os quais faziam movimentos cada vez mais desordenados, ele também fala frases sem conexão entre os gemidos, fazendo você segurar o rosto dele e colar sua testa na dele, novamente fazendo um contato visual enquanto ambos gemiam com cada estocada.

enzo!padre que voltou a te beijar quando sentiu que estava prestes a transbordar dentro de ti, soltando um ar pesado pelo nariz enquanto a língua envolvia a sua e se esvaziava dentro da buceta que pulsava ao redor do membro sensível. os braços de enzo te abraçavam com força enquanto a virilha dele ainda encostava e desencostava na sua, dessa vez mais lentamente, fodendo mais fundo a porra que ele tinha acabado de deixar no seu interior, o beijo também desacelerou para que vocês pudessem se recuperar do quão intenso tudo isso tinha acabado de ser.

enzo!padre que percebeu que, agora, a sua única devoção era você, que o único altar que ele queria louvar todos os dias era seu corpo. então, antes mesmo de sair de dentro de ti, disse ofegante “foge comigo”. seu rosto expressava hesitação, mas a forma que seu coração bateu mais forte ao pensar como seria viver com enzo te confirmou que era isso que você queria. “mas… como a gente vai fazer isso?”. “eu não sei… eu só sei que eu quero ficar com você pra sempre”.

—————————————————————————

» wn2: gente infelizmente eu pensei em uma coisa aqui e preciso plantar essa sementinha na mente de vocês: E SE ele ficou completamente biluteteio das ideias e tudo isso só aconteceu na cabeça dele. makes u think fr 🚬 (no caso eu escrevi tudo isso pensando que aconteceu mesmo tá bem mas achei esse pensamento legal e quis compartilhar, MAS E AÍ GOSTARAMMM?!! ficou bem grandinho né mas oh well camila yapper = fork found in kitchen 😛☝🏻

[gray-autumn-sky]

Laws of Attraction Sneak Peek

Robin, Regina and Mal go on date to jazz club.

Mal felt like she was floating.

It’d been two weeks since she was able to see them--two long and almost physically painful weeks of fundraisers and charity events where she’d had to grit her teeth and smile as Stefan told dull story after dull story to their fathers’ rich friends and possible donors. She wasn’t even sure what the parties were for--she’d been told, but she hadn’t listened past that it was something to do with the war effort--and she resented the momentary stalling of her freedom.

But then, things went back to normal and she went back to being ignored.

She made an excuse about spending a couple of days visiting a friend going through a break up, and her father offered little more than a huff as he nodded and told her to have fun. He didn’t ask the details and she was glad for it, and when she told Stefan she’d be leaving for a few days, his relief over being rid of her for awhile was almost palpable.

On her first night with them, Robin begrudgingly agreed to fill in for Graham in a trivia contest at a local bar. Regina pouted about already being in her pajamas, but they’d both gotten dressed and gone with him. It hadn’t been an eventful night, but she and Regina sat at the bar, talking and drinking, munching on pretzels and beer nuts. It amazed her sometimes how easy it was to just be with Regina--and with Robin, and the combination of the two--and that no matter how long they spent apart or how much time they spent together, it was never awkward or uncomfortable, and she never tired of it.

And it’d be something she one day missed--and something she hoped she could return to from time to time.

Robin had taken them by surprise, bounding toward them and clearly drunk, as he announced that his team had won. She and Regina both smiled and laughed as they told him they were glad. His eyes had widened with excitement as he pulled three tickets from his pocket, exclaiming that they were all theirs. He offered them an exasperated little sigh when it became obvious that neither she nor Regina shared in his excitement, and he’d drawn in a short breath before launching into an explanation, explaining that the trivia team had won tickets to a jazz cover band that was playing a couple of towns over, but he was only one who didn’t already have plans for the following weekend, so they’d given all three tickets to them.

Excitedly, he’d handed them over to Regina, and Mal leaned over to peek at them, cooing about how much she loved jazz. Regina agreed, confirming they didn't have any reason they couldn’t go--and that had been that, it’d all been settled.

They’d spent most of the next evening getting themselves ready. Regina wore a tightly fitted black dress with a gray stitching around the hem of the skirt that complemented the gray buttons down the back and the gray cuffs just above her elbows. Earlier that day while Robin and Regina were running errands, she’d popped into a little boutique and found a raspberry-colored dress that hugged her hips and showed off her long legs. The short sleeves were loose and made of lace and the back dipped down scandalously low, and as she’d been reached for a beaded black clip for her hair, a raspberry and black striped tie caught her eye--and that was the tie that Robin was wearing that night. She and Regina paired it with his black wool suit and Robin chose to forgo the jacket, wearing only the vest over his shirt. She’d grinned as she pinned up her hair, watching as Regina tied Robin’s tie, pecking his lips quickly as she patted his chest when she’d finished--and as they both sat on the edge of the bed, waiting for her to finish getting ready, she felt her excitement beginning to bubble.  She could hardly contain her excitement at actually going out with them, and she prayed that it wouldn’t be something they later regretted.  

But when they got to the jazz club, her worries all but faded. Within minutes they noticed two women sitting at the bar. One of them was talking and the other was listening intently, holding her drink in one hand and rubbing her fingers up and down the other woman’s forearm, smiling adoringly at her.

She’d felt a bit brazen as she reached for Regina’s hand, and she couldn’t help but smile as Regina’s finger’s curled down around hers. Robin’s hand pressed at the small of her back as he guided them to their table, and she bit down on her lip as she looked around, laughing softly to herself as she realized that no one was paying them any attention.

Couples were cuddled up in the booths and slow dancing on the floor as a record played overhead; people flirted at the bar, sipping their drinks and smoking their cigarettes, and a group of college-aged kids danced together at the side of the stage. She couldn’t quite tell if they were dancing by themselves or in a group, and it didn’t matter--what mattered is she could likely get away with being affectionate with both Robin and Regina, and no one would notice or care. They’d blend in, and for once, she’d feel normal.

“This is nice,” she murmurs, looking between them as they settle into their chairs. “I’ve never been here.”

“I’ve passed by it a few times,” Regina admits. “I never thought to go in.”

Robin shakes his head. “It’s no Billie Holiday, but--”

“The company is much better this time around,” she says, cutting in and offering him a wink.

“I don’t know what it is you two are talking about,” Regina says as she plucks the drink menu up from the table and looks to Mal. “But I agree.”

A waiter came by and they ordered their drinks--three martinis, hers with extra olives--and she told the quick version of the story she’d told Robin about Stefan taking her to see Billie Holiday at a club in Harlem as they waited. Regina empathized with being left alone and slid her hand over hers, her engagement ring clearly visible, and when the waiter returned with their drinks, he didn’t bat an eye.

And once again, she felt emboldened--they never got to be like this.

When the band was announced the lights dimmed even lower and the room had a romantic sensuous feel to it. She watched as couples slowly leave their seats to slow dance together and after a second drink, she found herself looking between them, biting down on her lip.

“I want to dance,” she said, holding her breath as they both turned to look at her. “Who wants to dance with me?”

“I think I want to see you two dance,” Robin says, cocking his brow as he looking between them. “I’ll stay here and guard the drinks.”

Regina nodded and she sighed a little, pouting a little as she looked to him. She wanted both of them. “You won’t come, too?”

Regina’s brows arched as though the thought hadn’t quite occurred to her, but she could tell by the way a grin slowly tugged up at the corners of her mouth that she liked the idea.

“In a little bit,” he says, his voice slow and tentative.

“Really?”

“Really!”

Shaking her head, she slid out of her chair. “Something tells me you’re just putting me off.”

“I’m not. We’ll dance after… the next five or so songs.” He grins as he lifts his empty glass. “After I drink up a bit more courage.”

“He’s… not a dancer.”

“No?” She asks, genuinely surprise. “We’ve danced.”

“In our living room,” he nods. “We did.”

Regina grins looking between them and her own breath caught at our. “When did you two dance in the living room?”

“When you were in Connecticut,” Robin supplies. “And after I’d had at least three glasses of wine.”

“It was four,” Mal tells her.

“See?”

Regina’s arm slips around her waist and she presses her cheek to her arm. She can’t help but smile at her as her stomach flutters and a resigned sigh escapes her. “Alright,” she concedes. “But don’t think you’re getting out of this.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Yes he would,” Regina laughs, her hand rubbing at the small of her back. “Don’t take it personally. When my cousin, Mary, got married, getting him out onto the dance floor was like pulling teeth.”

“I did it though.”

Regina’s eyes roll before shifting from Robin to Mal. “Two dances,” she says flatly. “I got two whole dances out of him at the very end of the night.”

“It’s better than none.”

At that, Regina’s eyes go wide and Mal laughs, shaking her head. “Well, if I get one, I’ll be happy,” she admits.

“As long as that one is with both of you.”

“Both--”

“At once--”

“Yes!” She exclaims, nodding as she brandishes her hand out at the dance floor. “I mean, look. No one will notice us. We’ll blend in.”

“But--”

“I’ve been watching,” she cuts in. “No one is going to care that the three of us are dancing together.” Sighing, she softens. “And it’s so hard to do things all together. It’d  be nice to just… have one night where we don’t have to hide or pretend that I’m some sort of awkward third wheel.”

Oh.

She hadn’t meant that to sound as heavy as it had. She only meant to tease, but their fall and she feels her own excitement drop.

“I didn’t mean to imply--” She stops as Regina hugs her into her side and she can see Robin’s resolve diminishing--likely out of guilt--and she feels a sharp twinge of regret at her core. She hadn’t meant for that to sound the way that it did. She hadn’t meant to imply that they didn’t care for her. She hadn’t meant that at all. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have--”

“Don’t apologize,” he murmurs as a lopsided little grin tugs up at the corner of his mouth. “I promise. A couple more drinks and I’ll join you.”

“Now I feel like I’ve guil--”

“No,” he cuts in. “I just need a bit more liquid courage before I make a fool out of myself.”

“It’s true,” Regina insists, squeezing her closer. “You’re not a third wheel. You’ve never been that.” She sighs and looks between them--and before she can let herself feel like she’s completely spoiled the mood of the evening, Regina leans in. “Come on, let's go out there give him a little show.”

At that, her brow arches up and Robin smiles as he settles back, clearly liking that idea.

She laughs a bit as Regina takes a couple of steps back. Her hand forms around hers and she gives her a little tug, tugging her toward the dance floor.

“I really didn’t--”

“I know,” Regina says before she can finish. “And so does he.”

“I just--” She sighs, shaking her head, wishing she hadn’t said what she did. “I didn’t mean to make this a heavy moment. We’re out having fun and--.”

“You’re not allowed to say that you spoiled it because you didn’t. I don’t think that.. Robin doesn’t think that, and you shouldn’t think that.”

“Even if--”

“You didn’t.”

She nods, grinning a little as they reached the edge of the dance floor. “It’s just… hard sometimes.”

“I know.”

“For the last two weeks, I’ve felt like I was cheating.”

Regina blinks. “What do you mean?”

“Being with Stefan so much. I… I felt like I was cheating.”

“On me and Robin?”

Mal nods and a soft, but uncomfortable chuckle escapes her. “How’s that for irony?”

“Mal,” Regina says, looking up at her a slow smile edges onto her lips and her arm slips around her waist. “You need to cut yourself some slack.” Drawing in a breath, she nods--and maybe Regina’s right, maybe she does. “Stop beating yourself up over a non-issue.”

“Maybe--”

“I won’t deny that both Robin and I wish you could spend more time with us, but I feel like no matter how much time we had with you, it’d never be enough.” Her fingers knead at her hip, and she’s looking at her so sweetly and with so much love that it nearly hurts. “And I hate that we have to watch every single move we make. It’s not fair, but as you pointed out, tonight isn’t one of those nights.”

“I--”

“I swear to god,” Regina cuts in. “If you apologize--”

“I’m not,” Mal says as a soft chuckle rises into her voice. “I was just going to tell you that you’re right.”

“Oh, well, I usually am, but--”

“I love you.”

“I love you, too.” She takes was Regian draws in a breath and then leans up onto her toes, pressing a quick, fleeting kiss to her lips. “And I really want to dance with you right now,” she says, her smile growing a bit coy. “After all, we did promise Robin a little show.”

“And I can’t imagine that us standing here, talking is very exciting.”

“It might make him a bit curious.”

“Not quite what I intended.”

“So, let’s then.”

Mal nods, and takes a step in, closing the gap between them. Their arms fold around each and she rests her head atop Regina’s, closing her eyes and breathing her in. She feels her insecurities and worry once more beginning to fade as they sway together to the soft, soothing jazz music; and, finally, when her eyes flutter open, she can’t help but notice that no one is looking at them--well, no one except Robin.

She offers him a little grin as she lifts her head, straightening her herself up as her eyes slide back to Regina. She takes a half step back and her hands slide down her arms, her fingers forming around her hands, as she takes a hard step in, shimming her hips as she does. Regina giggles a little and follows her lead, taking two steps back and then a step forward, her shoulders mimicking her feet, as they move to the rhythm of the song.

Reluctantly, she lets her go, laughing as Regina’s brow arches. She steps around her so they’re standing back-to-back. Regina’s hips are still moving and she’s looking back at her from over her shoulder, and a grin pulls onto her lips as her eyes meet Robins, watching as he watches her shimmy downward, her body rubbing against Regina’s backside. She laughs a little as Robin sips a nearly-gone martini as he smiles over the rim of the glass. She offers him a quick wink before breaking his gaze, reaching for Regina’s and grinning as Regina once again looks back at her from over her shoulder as her finger curls down around hers.

Mal steps back around her and tugs her up against herself. The music slows and grins as Regina bites down on her lip--her lips suddenly looking so full and soft, and without hesitation, she leans in and kisses her.

Regina’s tongue parts her lips, sliding against hers and she breathes her in, kissing her back as if they weren’t surrounded and on display. Her hand slips over Regina’s hip as Regina’s foot comes up, wrapping around her calf and pulling her closer and deeper into the kiss.

She’s vaguely aware that the song had ended and she feels a bit dizzy when a firm hand presses to her back, and before she can even process what that means, warm lips press to her neck as the smell of pine consumes her senses.

“I didn’t know this is what dancing meant,” Robin murmurs, his breath tickling her skin.

Regina breaks the kiss, her lips hovering for just a moment as her grin forms and her eyes shift to Robin. “You know that now that you’re here, we’re not letting you go.”

He laughs and reaches for her hand, stepping around Mal as his arm stretches around Regina’s waist--and then, he reaches for her hand. Mal grins as she takes it and her heart flutters as Robin’s smile brightens, his eyes sparkling, even in the dim light.

“Well, ladies,” he says, looking between them as a new song begins. “What do you say? Can I have this dance?”

[glindalovesshoes]

Pearls Of Time II

Here we go! It's the last day of @oqpromptparty and I'm so proud to present you a new story in this verse here!

A huge thanks goes out to my betas waterbaby, Allie and Trenesha as well as Shay and Miles, who helped me a lot when I was getting frustrated. These are all amazing ladies. Also a special thanks to Jen, who hosted OQ Prompt Party, gave out prizes and organized everything! She's a true treasure and we can be lucky to have her in this fandom.

Prompt 104: Sex on the kitchen table (counter)

Prompt 101: Kissing in the rain

Now, I really hope you like it and I'd love to hear about your thoughts and feelings either here or on Twitter or in the upcoming review week we will be hosting since you all got flooded with so much material this week. Please send some love to all authors and artists out there who worked their asses off to brighten your week with different contributions each day.

Now let's go back in time...

Pearl Harbor, 26th November 1941

It's the day before Thanksgiving, when Robin finishes his flight training for the day. Today has been fun - more than he's had with David in a long while. They've done the double outside loop - a move they've been secretly training for weeks with one of the new airplanes their squadron has gotten. Back on the ground, they are met with cheers and jubilation from their mates. Their planes are parked in perfect sync, the propeller still slightly turning as they open up the cockpit windows and climb out of their second home.

A group of men is running toward them, have their hats flying high into the air, and many pads on the shoulder are given. Questions such as 'How'd you do that?' or 'You need to show me!' have both friends laughing. Even if the others wanted to, they wouldn't be able to pull it off. They're best friends, know each other's moves, trust each other blindly. Robin Locksley and David Nolan are  the two best pilots of the squadron, that's why they've just recently been promoted to the next rank.

Robin smirks at David, who's holding his hand up for a high five which turns into their usual handshake and chest bump. "Well done, Second Lieutenant Nolan."

David bumps his shoulder with his fist, clearly enjoying the use of his new title. "Couldn't have done it without you, Second Lieutenant Locksley!"

The jubilance is about to continue, when someone clears his throat audibly. Shit. The group of men grows silent, some even shrink down, and like the sea in front of Moses, the men step aside in order to reveal Robin and David, who both have to bite the insides of their cheeks in order to stop grinning. Getting caught is bad, getting caught by Major Midas is worse.

Nobody says a word as the Major stands there, his eyes focused on his two best pilots in annoyance. "You two. My office. Now!"

Continue on FF.net or AO3

[the-alpha-incipiens]

Drawn to the Fire (2/7) - DOQ Week Day 2: Family

Time for day 2! So this is sort of a thing I’ve been wanting to write into the Flicker Beat verse for a while. It feels like a touchy subject but hopefully everyone enjoys it, and finds it as adorable as I do. @doqweek

Summary: Maleficent has a secret to tell her family.

AO3 Link

Drawn to the Fire (Day 2: Family)

Maleficent has always thought her potions work has been some of her strongest magic. She likes mixing things, and she’s always had an almost innate understanding of the magic bonds that can strengthen or weaken when made into potion form. But as she mixes this particular potion, her heart is in her throat, one hand pressed to her middle as she watches the liquid bubble and brew. She’s never made it before, had to dig out one of Regina’s books just to find the recipe, which means she should be more focused, more concerned about executing it perfectly.

But she can’t. Her mind is racing, and it’s almost like the first time she found herself in this position. And that’s ridiculous, because her life is so much better now, with the family she’s carved out. She’s not alone.

Except.

They haven’t discussed this — beyond assuring each other of the impossibility of it ever happening. Regina had made sure of that in regards to herself, and Mal had thought after everything she had been through, she’d never experience this again.

She doesn’t even need the potion to tell her, truthfully. She can tell, just like she could with Lily. That hand held to her lower abdomen pulses with magic, a little tendril exploring until it feels the flickering deep inside of her, a little spark slowly building to a flame. Her stomach twists even as a small smile catches at the corners of her lips.

The potion will only confirm what she already knows, but she wants it anyway. She wants something she can actually show to Robin and Regina when she inevitably has to tell them, because she can’t hide this forever.

Maleficent takes a deep breath, lets her magic brush against her womb once more, and then she focuses her gaze on the potion. It’s almost ready.

After it’s done, she stares at the potion, the little vial of liquid now turned milky pink. A positive result, as if she had any doubts when that tiny spark burns in her stomach. Tears well in her eyes, and that hand at her abdomen presses tighter, her free hand going to her mouth to hold in her sob. A mix of emotions rush through her, and all she can think is Regina and Robin and how she has to tell them.

Her magic is swirling around her before she’s consciously called upon it, whisking her from her hiding place in Regina’s vault back to the house. Regina isn’t supposed to be at home, it’s during the work day, but when Maleficent orients herself enough to realize she’s in the living room, there’s a similarly confused Regina on the couch. Robin, too, and he’s glancing around, as if he can’t quite believe he’s in the manor.

The unexpected results of her magic flusters Maleficent, red creeping up her neck as she clears her throat. When Regina asks if this was her doing, she mutters, “Sorry,” and then Regina’s brow is knitted with concern along with her confusion.

“Is everything all right?” Regina asks, and Maleficent is sure she can read the tension in her frame. Not to mention she had been crying earlier, and she’d hazard a guess that her eyes are still red-rimmed.

“I didn’t mean to — I was just trying to transport myself,” and she’s stumbling over her words, tongue working itself into knots, and their concern only grows. Those tears are back, prickling at her eyes. “I’m sorry, I don’t want to worry you…”

“Mal, just tell us what’s wrong,” Robin murmurs, and he’s approaching her now, reaching for her.

She collapses into his arms, unable to deny herself his comforting warmth. The smell of forest surrounds her as she presses her face to his neck, and then Regina’s there, too, her hand on her back, rubbing soothing circles as Maleficent’s shoulders tremble with barely contained sobs.

“I’m pregnant,” she gasps out, biting her lip hard once the words are free, and she feels the tension in Robin’s frame as Regina’s comforting hand freezes.

Her blood slows in her veins, even as her heart beats harder, fluttering in her chest. She shouldn’t have — she needed to — how could she just blurt it out like that—

“Did you say—?” and that’s Robin, he’s got his hands on her shoulders, gently holding her as he stares into her eyes, and Maleficent can’t read his expression, almost a year together of gazing into those eyes and now she has no idea what they’re saying.

It terrifies her, almost as much as hearing Regina’s voice next. It’s just a soft, disbelieving, “You’re pregnant?” but it slices straight through her, because she doesn’t know what it means. All that history and she cannot gauge her reaction, cannot fathom what either of them are thinking in this moment, when she’s dropped this into their laps without any sort of warning.

“Yes,” she confirms, and she holds up the little vial of potion, knowing Regina at least will understand what it means.

As expected, Regina’s eyes are locked onto the object in her hand, and when she shakes her head, a little breathless gasp of “How?” escaping her. Maleficent’s heart clenches when she continues, “You said it wasn’t possible…”

“I know,” she says, ducking her head. She can’t bear to look Regina in the eyes, not when she’s disappointed them like this. “I thought it wasn’t, otherwise I would have taken more precautions…”

“Wait,” Robin interrupts, his hand catching her chin, urging her to tilt her head back up but she shakes out of his grip, takes a few steps back for some much needed distance. She can’t be near them when she’s done this to them, when she’s been so careless and now there’s a child that they don’t want.

They’d discussed this, back when this entire relationship started. Talked about whether they’d need protection of some kind, because it wouldn’t be fair to have a child, and she had told them there would be no need. That dragons breeding was rare anyway, rarer still when disturbed from the natural order of things, and being transported to a realm without magic, killed, and then brought back to life certainly counted as a disturbance.

She hadn’t even realized her cycle had synced with this realm until it was too late, and she could feel the presence inside of her.

“Mal, look at us, please,” Robin says, though he’s dropped his hand to his side, had let her step away from him without a struggle.

Maleficent glances up, but her eyes are swimming, tear-filled as they are, and she can’t properly see them. Perhaps if she could, she’d be able to discern the compassion on his face, and the slight hurt from her rejection. As it is, she just feels miserable, that hand pressed to her middle once more, her magic instinctively seeking out that little flickering inside of her.

“Are you — you’re upset, is something wrong?” he asks, and she’s a little dumbfounded, her brow knitting together as she regards him.

Of course she’s upset. She’s messed up, she’s gotten pregnant after they had discussed no children, that they weren’t ready for it, and they thought they couldn’t have them anyway.

“I know you two didn’t want more children,” she manages to say around the lump in her throat. “And I honestly didn’t think it was possible, I’m so sorry, I should have — I should have been on a potion, or something, just in case…”

“Maleficent,” and that’s Regina, her voice suddenly firm in a way it wasn’t before, and it has her eyes snapping to meet hers. Whereas before Maleficent couldn’t read her expression, this one is crystal clear to her: that thin line of her lips, the dark spark in her eyes. “Do you think we’re angry with you right now?”

She raises her eyebrows at her, somehow pulling together enough of a look that says With that tone, yes, and Regina scowls for a moment.

“You know what I mean,” she says with a little roll of her eyes. She takes a hold of Maleficent’s hand, urging her onto the sofa where she and Robin both surround her. “We never said we didn’t want more children.”

“You did,” Maleficent argues, frowning. “You said it wouldn’t be wise to have any accidents with our arrangement, that bringing babies into it would be too complicated—”

“Mal,” Regina interrupts, and she looks at her, at the tears glistening in her eyes as Regina brings a hand up to cup her face. “God, Mal, that’s not what I meant. It wouldn’t have been wise to have children then. When we were just starting out, unsure of where this was all going.”

“Not to mention,” Robin says now, and Maleficent turns to look at him. He’s teary-eyed too, but what shocks her is the profound look of love on his face. “You know we both adore children. How could you think we’d be angry about this?”

Oh.

“You’re… You’re not upset?” she murmurs, something in her chest unclenching as she looks at them properly now. Those expressions that seemed so unreadable before are a lot clearer to her now, as she realizes how she had the situation all wrong. They weren’t disappointed at all, weren’t judging her failure.

They were simply stunned, overwhelmed by the impossibility they hadn’t realized was more probable than they had guessed.

“Of course not,” Regina says, and then she leans in, kissing her, those tears spilling over now, and Maleficent can just barely taste them on her lips. “The thought of having a baby with you — with both of you… I didn’t expect it, but I’m so overjoyed at the prospect. I love you.”

Maleficent turns then to Robin, wanting him to confirm it as well, and yes, of course he’s just as thrilled. A wide grin splits his face, and he nuzzles her cheek as he says, “I love you, too,” and then his hand slides to her belly, just resting there. He can’t feel the spark inside of her, not without magic, but she loves the comforting warmth of his palm even over her blouse. “And I cannot wait to raise this baby with the two loves of my life.”

She was so foolish earlier. She laughs, relieved, that crushing despair gone as she’s encircled in the arms of her lovers.

“I guess now all that’s left is to tell our children,” she says, biting her lip as she momentarily worries about what they’ll say.

She needn’t have.

They have dinner that night, Regina inviting Lily over so they can tell them all at the same time. The boys are immediately excited, plying Maleficent with questions about dragon pregnancies and will the baby be a dragon too and all sorts of fantastical things. Roland puffs up with excitement at the thought that he’ll be a big brother to someone, and Henry promises to teach him all the things he’s learned about being an older brother. Lily is quieter, more reserved, and when she takes the plates into the kitchen, Maleficent follows her in, regarding her daughter carefully as she scrapes food into the garbage disposal.

“Are you upset?” she asks, and Lily stills in front of the sink, but doesn’t turn around, doesn’t say anything.

When she does finally look at her, Maleficent’s heart sinks into her stomach. There are tears in her eyes, eyes so wide and brown and fathomless just like Regina’s, and this is Maleficent’s fault.

“There were times when I was on the street, and I wished I had a brother or a sister to look after me. Or even for me to look after. Something I could have responsibility for,” Lily says with a shrug. “It was stupid, of course. And then when I got older, I got over it. I was glad I didn’t have somebody else to give a damn about me, because then I didn’t have to give a damn about anything. I could just hate you, and Snow White, and this fucking place I didn’t even know for sure existed.”

Maleficent stays silent, though she wants to say something. To comfort. But she doesn’t think Lily is telling her this to hurt her.

“I thought I didn’t want this,” Lily continues, and she waves a hand. “You, the house, this whole ‘family’ thing.” She laughs then, a soft little thing, almost disbelieving. “But I’m so damn glad I have you, and Regina, and Robin, and the boys. And Mom… I am so happy for you and Regina and Robin.”

Lily is not a hugger, by any means. She tolerates the boys, particularly Roland, and more rarely indulges Maleficent or Robin. Regina shares this trait with her daughter, so Maleficent thinks she can count hugs between those two on one hand.

But Lily steps forward and wraps her arms around her mother, holding tight for a moment. Maleficent feels the tears return, pricking her eyes, and can’t find it in her to care as she holds her daughter. She feels something, a spark, a shock, and Lily gasps, pulling away.

“Was that—?”

Maleficent nods, takes Lily’s hand and presses it to her abdomen. “The baby,” she confirms. “I’m not far along by any means, but the magic is already there inside of them. It’s responding to you.”

“Wow,” Lily mutters, looking more than a little awed. “Hey there, spark plug,” she says, thumb rubbing over the material of Maleficent’s dress.

For the first time since she felt the baby quickening inside of her, Maleficent feels entirely at peace.

[outlawqueenbey]

DOQ Week - Day 2 - Family

Titled - Look Both Ways

Today is one of those days where the sun seems to be shining just a bit brighter, the sky just that much bluer, even the chirping of birds just a little more harmonious. Today is one of those days that nothing, absolutely nothing could possibly wreck. The domestic life is something she hadn’t really planned on enjoying this much, the entire thought of having a family surrounding her was a dream let go decades back.

Yet here she is, sitting on a soft cream couch, thumbing through a national geographic magazine (the one she’s been waiting what feels to be an eternity for just because there is an elephant highlight in it), sipping on a glass of red wine waiting for her family to come home for dinner, a dinner she’s made.

No, Maleficent had never thought this would be her life, swapping solitude for society. It’s had it’s moments. Where the claustrophobic tightness of the town has had the fire inside raging and rumbling to burst as though she’s about to burn the entire town to the ground. Fortunately, only a few acres of trees have been torched. Robin (another interesting adjustment in her world) had been kind enough to find her a large piece of the forest where not a soul resided, and she could simply sit in her much needed self-silence whenever her anxiety peaked. It used to happen more often, but she is learning that maybe being slightly suffocated by love isn’t such a terrible thing.

In the beginning, she wanted Regina, was happy to steal the woman away from the pain this place seemed to continually cause her. A soulmate had left, a surrogate child gone with him, and Regina had sought the comfort of her old friend, had rekindled this strange harboured love once more. But the thief had come back, and Maleficent hadn’t exactly been thrilled. She loved Regina, and Regina loved her back, but she also loved this outlaw and his messy though rather adorable offspring. They’d talked about it at length, Mal and Regina, what this meant for them, Robin returning from New York, and after a few months apart and some serious discussion they had all decided that if it made Regina happy, regardless of how Robin and Mal felt towards each other initially, that they would make it work.

And it’s beyond what Mal could have ever anticipated. She loves Regina. She is rather fond of Robin, dotes on Henry, but Roland, the chocolate button eyed, unruly, soft curls and pink chubby, dimple dented cheeks have been her entire downfall. They tease her about it. Her obsessive affection for the youngest, and whilst she still scoffs and barks back a threat about toasting their skin, her smile is brighter than the sun when she hears his voice. They can all go to hell for calling her a soft marshmallow for the boy, if he wants a Dragon teddy bear, well then he is going to have the best bloody snuggle buddy in the entire world.

And for as taken with Roland as Maleficent is, the affection is reciprocated in full. She is his guardian, his movie picking partner, spaghetti fork twirler, bathtime bubble maker, mischievous partner in crime, cookie stealing accomplice, and the place he goes when he wishes to be extra affectionate. He says she purrs, that her heart rumbles in her chest when he sleeps on her, that she is warm and soft, and keeps all the bad guys out of his dreams.

She waits everyday for him to come home from school. Impatiently, with her eyes checking the clock until it strikes twelve minutes after three, which means the god awfully colored long transportation car (Regina calls it a bus….) will be turning the corner in exactly two minutes, and she will be standing outside on the sidewalk in 90 seconds. It’s one of the best parts of her day, hearing his tiny scream of excitement as he flings himself into her awaiting arms from the second to last step on the bus. The babble of nonsense that quickly follows, and the smugness in her heart when he begs her to dragon for him, which simply entails she let out a puff of silver smooth smoke out into whatever shape he desires, usually it’s a lion, but she’s been trying elephant shapes… and he still squeals and burrows his head into her chest happily as they turn back to the house.

And so here she is, flipping through magazine pages whilst flicking her gaze to the clock, and it’s nice enough outside that she can afford to wait a few extra minutes out in the sunshine. Robin is in the kitchen humming far too loudly which probably means he’s sneaking in a few bites of dinner before it’s ready. Bloody thief. As if his ears were burning, he walks into the living room, stopping mid bite as he realizes Maleficent’s eyes glinting at him from the sofa, apparently unaware that she was still here and not already outside waiting for Roland. He gulps hard, swallowing painfully against the lodge of stolen food stuffed into his cheeks and does his best to smile at Mal, who simply arches her eyebrow at him.

“Shower sex for the whole week if we keep this between us.”

She laughs at his poor bargaining skills, but nods anyway and reaches for the glass of lemonade in his hand. Roland likes lemonade, her puff of purple magic adds a few plump sliced strawberries into the yellow sugary liquid and she is out the door before Robin can question the thievery of his drink.

It’s gorgeous outside too as she pads down the stone walkway, noting the fact Robin should probably cut the grass soon. The blades are tipping over, and she is more than accepting to the idea of watching him sweat shirtless in the sun whilst she and Regina watch from the patio chairs, admiring the view. She hits the iron gate at the same time her brunette love rolls into the driveway, her dainty little fingers waggling behind the window. The engine cuts off and Mal leans over the gate, appreciating the low cut in Regina’s silk red wine blouse, heating at the tightness of her dark skirt contrasting the olive of her toned calves shaped down into tall snake skinned pumps. She looks good enough to eat… perhaps later. It’s a grinned “Hello,” a happy squeeze of a hand, followed by a gentle kiss to Mal’s cheek. All very damn domestic, and Mal loves it, kissing a lover whilst waiting for her tadpole to come home. And the timing is perfect, as Regina leaves her with a pat on the bum and the cheesewagon turns the corner. Her heart skips joyously and she closes the gate behind her.

The bus comes to a stop on the other side of the road which is different… irritating, and has her brows cinching together as she waits, arching a touch to the right to try and catch a glimpse of a mop of curly brown hair. Why it’s on the other side is beyond her, but it doesn’t make much of a difference. The ghosting sound of Regina’s voice mentioning that there was a new guy driving the school bus, a lanky half wit of a man, Horace something… or perhaps it was Jasper, the name escaping Maleficent in its non-importance to her.

Still, it’s taking Roland longer to come off the bus, and patience isn’t the Dragon’s strongest suit. More so when it comes to being reunited with her tyke. They have oatmeal chocolate chip cookies to eat, and another chapter of Pete’s Dragon to read before bathtime.

The sound of a rumbling engine breaks up the serene sway of the wind. Far too loud and violently roaring as it turns the corner, a god awful electric green color speeding into sight. She hates these magical moving steel boxes and all the noises and jilting they cause. Walking is nice, horse back even better, there is no need for these metal boxes. Mal’s eyes frown as she watches the heavy vehicle accelerate, thundering revving of it’s engine, bulky tires rotating wildly as it slices the distance of the road in half, and why the hell aren’t they slowing down?

Red flashing lights begin to blink from the bus, a stop sign slapping out from it’s yellow side, and still the green car doesn’t slow, jerks slightly left before evening out, and she sees the first few children clambering out of the bus and straight into the road, the green beanie of Roland’s finally bouncing into view. There are children in the crossing, the bus is halted, the caution lights are flashing, the car will stop. She’s been trying to use less magic and learn to trust the workings of mechanical life here, she won’t freeze the car unless it’s absolutely necessary.

She sees his little hand wave from across the street at her, a dimpled, toothy smile beaming as he calls out her name excitedly, waving hard enough to have his hair jostling back and forth beneath his hat.

She goes to tell him to stay there, to wait, she will come to him, but the car’s engine drowns her out, her realization she momentarily forgot about the vehicle sinks in her gut as Roland steps out onto the crosswalk. She panics, her magic sputters and everything freezes in time.

The sound of tires squealing shrieks, stench of burnt rubbing trailing behind with the cloud of white hot smoke as they attempt to brake, but it’s not enough, the wheels lock and skid into the intersection. A horn blares out horrendously, a shrill scream pierces the air, a horrid smack of something onto somewhere, and a Captain America backpack flies into the air. The entire time Maleficent is frozen to the stop, eyes locked onto the green beanie that floats for a half moment in the sky and sways to the ground a few yards away and everything goes deadly silent.

No one moves, stunned for a tense, disbelieving second, scattered about the street, around the green smoking car, air bags deployed and horn still ringing. His name drops terrified from her lips, and all hell breaks loose.

She runs, bellowing out for him, her magic stampeding back into her veins as her feet hit the hot pavement. Stunned pairs of wide eyes follow her between the crowd that has begun to conglomerate around the crumpled hood of the car. Someone is calling out for help, a small girl is crying off to the side, and still there is no Roland leaping out from safety towards her.

Her lungs burn, mouth agape though no air sucks in, eyes wild in her search for him, she just needs to see him, his big brown, button eyes sparkling up at her, the giggling that starts at the base of his belly, she just need to find him. Safe and unharmed.

It’s a chorus of fear and panic, screams and sobs, her dragon enhanced senses being overloaded with the alarming terror swimming in the crowd. It makes her ears ring at their high pitched wailing, nose inhaling the overwhelming burning smell of rubber tires scorched by the pavement. Her usually hot skin chills and prickles with a sense of foreboding dread.  Her irritation flares at the stifling amount of people bashing frantically into her, slowing her progress in finding him. She hauls a few people off to the side, uncaring of their outburst, quickening her pace as the crowd finally parts, revealing the smoking crumpled green car crunched against a tree, still blaring on it’s horn, and she can see the driver slumped into the airbag, squashing the wheel, groaning as he beings to come too.

“Roland?! Roland, where are you?!”

Her heart plays with the fine line of hysteria when he doesn’t answer back.

“He’s under there!”

What the fuck does that mean? Under where? Under what?

“Oh shit! Someone get help!”  

She sees a teenage boy bending at the front of the car, and the entire fire of the dragon inside recoils into an ice block as her eyes finally find what she’s been searching for. Beneath its mechanical belly, a small fist crooks out awkwardly, unmoving and clutching a stuffed red stained elephant, and Maleficent shrieks.

.

..

…

..

.

They heard the squealing of tires, the impact of what could only have been a vehicle hitting something hard and then complete dead silence. Her heart sank the same time Robin’s eyes flared with panic. Mal was outside waiting for Roland, the crunch sounded horribly like a car crash, and Regina’s blood runs cold at the thought, there are children outside. Setting her coffee cup down as gently as possible with the trembling in her hands, she turns on her heel, Robin behind her instantly as they open the front door. It’s chaos that meets Regina’s eyes, an absolute pandemonium of children screaming and crying, parents flooding out into the street, the smell of burnt tar swirling into the dark grey cloud of smoke just beyond the crowd.

Keep calm, Regina, panicking will only make things worse. Breathe and just figure out what happened. They are both okay, it’s going to be okay.

Her mind cycles the mantra, but her gut feels like a hot stone is burning her alive with fear as she and Robin step onto the pavement, and her blood freezes at the torn scream of a voice she knows down to her core. They run as the sound of an ambulance siren blares in the distance, the crowd parting instantly as Regina shoves them aside.

Mal is there, on the ground and for a moment Regina’s heart falters thinking maybe she is hurt, maybe her scream was in pain, but the closer her heels bring her to the carnage the worse her gut wrenches. She is sobbing uncontrollably when they reach the Dragon, and Robin lets out a heavy, “Oh fuck,” when they see what she clawing under the car for.

It’s Roland. His arm is barely visible underneath the crunched, smoking metal, the elephant he carries everywhere with him stained bloody in his limp fist. “Mal! Mal, what happened!” Regina bellows out, kneeling beside the blonde whose hands are ripping at the pavement.

“Oh God. Fucking Christ. Someone get help!”

Mal doesn’t even recognize them beside her, her attention focused on getting her little dragon out from beneath the vehicle. Her eyes burn with tears as she calls over and over again for him, panic overtaking her mind as she slams her shoulder into the door, heaving with as much force through a screeching roar. It doesn’t budge. Not until she feels Robin and Regina on either side of her, pushing and lifting the car with every ounce of force they can muster. It begins to lift slowly, creaking and cracking through the blinding haze of smoke.

His brown jacket comes into view, tattered and torn. The mop of curly hair slumped about his face, hiding him from Mal’s eyes. He doesn’t move. Doesn’t respond. Laying there horrendously still. Her hands grip around his arm and she tugs gently, but his pants are caught on something and Mal cries out terror stricken. “Roland! My little Dragon, can you hear me? Please say something! Roland!”

The car flips on it’s side and Roland’s little body is unveiled, legs at an awkward angle, blood pooling around his face, matting his hair and the tar road below. Mal slings her arms around his body and hauls him out of the wreckage. He’s limp in her arms.

“Is he breathing?! Mal? Is he… is he alive?” Robin stammers on his fallen knees beside her, running his palm over his son’s pallored face. Tears coat her cheeks as she tries to rouse him, shaking him gently as she whispers into his ear for him to open his eyes, she just needs to see his beautiful brown, chocolate button eyes.

“Roland? Baby? Can you hear us?”

“Roland?”

There is nothing and Mal’s heart shatters into a thousand bleeding pieces as her fingers search for his pulse under his chubby jaw.

“The ambulance is here!” Someone calls out, but they don’t move, Mal doesn’t dare relinquish her grip on her tadpole. He will be fine. He has to be fine. There is no way in hell she is letting him die. Not now. Not ever.

“Come back to me.” She presses a kiss to his forehead and lets her magic flow from her heart and into his broken, bloodied, barely breathing body.

Warmth. Hot stifling electric waves pulse through her body, latching into him, seeping into each broken vein, every shattered bone from the tip of his toes to the lump in his skull. Regina’s hand grabs her own and she feels her own magic thumping into her, vortexing in with the light she holds, and Regina’s thoughts begin to flow into Mal’s mind and magic.

Roland, my little knight. Baby, we need you to come back to us. Breathe for us, baby. I know you can do it.

Together they stitch together the lacerations that bleed. Bind the bones that splinter awkwardly through delicate, soft skin.

Little Dragon, beat that heart of yours for me. We have cookies to eat, I made you oatmeal chocolate chip, your favorite, and you know I can’t eat them all myself. Come on, sweet love, open your eyes for me.

They fill his lungs with air, his heart with love, pouring in every ounce they have for this little outlaw that has stolen their entire souls. Robin’s hand rests on Mal’s lower back, his other brushing back fallen locks of hair as he too whispers for his son to be strong, to be brave, he’s a merry man and they need him.

It takes forever, an eternity that ticks by slow as molasses, and Mal’s eyes begin to water when he still doesn’t move as their magic slowly ebbs away, healing everything they can possibly touch and the hot wet tears fall down onto her cheeks when his eyes still do not crack open for her.

Regina stifles a sob into Mal’s shoulder, whispering out his name, a hand thumbing gently over his ribs. The paramedics are beside them suddenly, kneeling down quietly as they look over the injured boy, opening his coat button by button though Mal still holds him into her lap, combing through his blood soaked matted hair. He’s so small, so unbelievably tiny and precious to her, to all of them.

Silence surrounds them all as they wait, the paramedics slowly cutting away his shirt and placing ecg pads to his little torso. “We need to get him to the hospital.” One of them comments gently, reaching out for him, but Mal is possessive of the little one, her little one. She shakes her head and leans over his body, her tears dropping onto his forehead and both Regina and Robin cradle them all tight together.

“Mellie?” A soft quiet cough breaks the awful silence as little brown eyes flicker behind lashes and finally open.

“Hi, little dragon.” She smiles, cries harder, if that’s possible, but it’s from relief. Robin heaves a heavy breath, cradles his son’s head as he breathes out his name gently, Regina doing the same as they all sigh out a tense, happy breath.

“Can we still have cookies?” He sniffles in Maleficent’s lap.

“Of course we can, you can eat them all.”

“But you like them too.”

“I’ll make us more.”

Six hours later their entire family is curled up on the couch, stuffed shoulder to thigh, squished into the cushions, but space is not needed, not right now, never again as Mal’s soft voice reads out the words to his favorite book, the last words, “And the little dragon family lived happily ever after,” resonating far greater than ever before as Roland finally nods off to sleep, healthy and here with them.

Family after all is the most important thing.

[brookeap3]

Daily DOQ Drabble #53

More of Regina falling for kittens.

They’d been taking Roland around the neighborhood, the three of them casually strolling down the street hand in hand behind him as the little man skips up and down sidewalks and shouts, Trick or Treat!, at every house. He’s dressed as a dragon, had wanted to go as Mal and the blonde had nearly burst into tears when he’d declared his decision weeks ago.

Though apparently too old now to go trick or treating, Henry had graciously offered to pass out candy at their own house with Violet so all of them could go with Roland. So they’re making their way back up the drive, when the creature darts out in front of them from the bushes.

“Look! A kitty!” Roland exclaims, dropping his basket and letting candy spill out as he tries to catch it.

It’s Mal who steps in, placing a hand to his shoulder and curtailing him with a, “Slow down. We don’t want to scare it.” She bends down to one knee, making soft clicking sound with her tongue and reaching out an open palm to the kitten. The animal hesitates a second before moving to rub against Mal’s hand, arching it’s back under her touch. “Oh aren’t you gorgeous,” she purrs.

“Can we keep him?” Roland asks, turning huge puppy dog eyes on Regina. She’s the one who he needs approval from. The tough one to crack. And they all know it. Robin poorly stifles a chuckle beside her.

She wants to say no, they already have Malum, and she’d been firm in her resistance of that in the beginning. But the little devil’s stolen her heart and this one has affectionately hopped up into her love’s arms while it lets Roland pet it, stares at her with big glowing eyes and reminds her of their tiny grey terror.

Regina sighs, transfers her gaze to Mal’s and easily reads the silent longing in the other woman’s. “What should we name him?”

[oqpromptparty]

Hi everyone! If you’d like to take part in this year’s Prompt Party Week, just select any of the prompts from the list below and write a fic, make a video or create some art based on it. Please note that more than one person may choose the same prompt.

You may submit new stories or include the prompts in any of your existing verses (though all your entries must be posted for the first time during Prompt Party Week).

Art/Video makers may use any of the prompts, but there are some Art/Video specific ones at the bottom of the post.

I have condensed some of the prompts that were a little too long and removed some that felt repetitive or have been sent before… feel free to take some liberties with some of the more specific prompts!

If you have any questions, please tweet @OQPromptParty

OQ Prompt Party week will run from 27th May - 2nd June 2019. Please don’t post anything until then.

Prizes:

Everyone who posts a prompt for all seven days of the OQ Prompt Party week will be sent a limited edition, one of a kind Outlaw Queen button/badge. These will never be available again, so don’t miss out!

Each day there will also be the opportunity to win another prize. You will be entered into a prize draw and the more prompts you write, the more times your name will be entered into the draw. I will announce which prizes will be available on each day soon.

There will also be a separate prize for most prompts included in a single one-shot/chapter (crack!fic encouraged).

And now! Without further ado, here are your prompts:

Lonely Robin paints/sculpts a picture of the woman of his dreams and she comes to life.

Roland’s first lost tooth.

“Sorry I thought you were someone else.”

Regina has scars from surviving a fire and thinks nobody can love her, Robin proves her wrong.

Roadtrip AU: Regina and Robin go to DisneyWorld for the first time and take Henry and Roland

Regina is the (little) sister of Robin's over-protective best friend.

One (or both of them) is in a coma, and they keep meeting in their dreams.

The first time Roland calls Regina "Mama"

Fighting Wolves.

A positive resolution or a rewrite of the baby storyline - Robin isn't the father / Regina is the mother.

Robin and Regina pick up a stranger at a bar and have some fun

Henry, Robin and Roland play Mario Kart

Regina over-hears someone talking about Robin in a language he doesn't know and she defends him.

Robin meets Daniel or Regina meets real Marian.

Regina and Robin are professors at the same university, enemy-to-lovers

OQ AU in a Love+Death+Robots scenario.

Enchanted AU: Regina finds herself trapped in the real world, New York City and finds something unexpected: a happy ending.

Regina asking for something she considers weird in bed

Modern AU: Regina is a witch and when Robin discovers it accidentally, his reaction surprises her.

Makeup sex

Regina’s new obsession is bubble tea, Robin just thinks it’s weird

Regina and Robin in a cooking competition.

Season 6 AU: Robin goes to the Wish!Realm with Regina and they both meet their Wish!versions.

MCU AU: Either Robin or Regina gets taken in the Thanos snap. Bonus points if you also wipe out one or more of the kids for maximum angst.

Robin, Regina and the boys in an escape room.

A little private time in Camelot.

Robin is a warlock who cast the first curse, and Regina is an archer who steals from the rich to give to the poor.

Ella Enchanted AU

Robin leaves after he feels betrayed

Summer vacation

Quiet times near the fireplace.

The Princess Diaries 1 and 2 AU

"Only You" AU

One of them gets injured and the other has to take care of them.

Robin and wishHook have to plan a part of Robin & Alice’s wedding (bonus points for a crack fic).

Spilled wine/coffee.

Robin & Regina are expecting twins.

Regina as a sex therapist.

Regina is thrown from her horse, Robin is the one who helps her.

Confessions of a Shopaholic AU: but Regina/or Robin is a hoarder of books instead of clothes.

Atlantis.

Accidental magical body swap

Bedsharing

Good Girls AU - Robin as a stay home dad, Regina as a criminal

Robin is custodian of a cemetery and meets Regina when she buries Daniel and keep meeting as she mourns.

Regina didn’t realize marrying Robin meant that she’d also be getting custody of all the Merry Men

The Sound of Music AU

One of them falling (any kind of fall), the other helping

Person A almost losing a loved one and person B tries to comfort them.

Inspiration from Pet Sematary - Regina or Robin dies and the other buries them in a place that happens to be cursed so that those buried there are resurrected. Regina or Robin is resurrected but are soon to be revealed as being darker and more sinister than they were.

Henry’s graduation.

Letters

Fic based on “Die From A Broken Heart” by Maddie and Tae. Robin and Regina have a massive fight after he shows up wasted with a few buddies... he walks out on her and slams the door behind him and she runs to her mom for comfort. By the end Robin comes to apologize and slowly win her back. AU (Cora is the good guy)

AU - Robin attends a convention with Henry and Roland.

Robin catches Regina full on dancing around in the kitchen while making dinner.

Pregnancy horniness.

Lost AU.

Roland's bedtime routine is exhausting.

OQ wedding + Robin carries Regina bridal style into their house.

Season 7 AU: Roni takes in a stray fox who turns out to be Robin.

Starting a new relationship after having slept together.

Stuck on a crowded train.

Regina and Robin visit New York City.

Regina hates celebrating her birthday, but Robin finds out and does something special for her.

Hiking in the woods.

Regina as a female knight and Robin as her Squire.

Robin and Regina are in Regina’s vault and Robin accidentally knocks over a potion, turning Regina into an animal.

“I didn’t know you speak…”

OQ get arrested for public sex

Grown up, Robyn meets grown-up Roland in the Enchanted Forest.

Regina and Robin take a walk on the beach at sundown.

Chaperoning Roland's first date.

Robin makes Regina a romantic meal and it doesn’t go to plan.

Person A pretends to be alright on their own but they finally accept they want Person B's company.

Regina shares an unusual fear.

OQ falling asleep on the sofa together.

San Junipero AU: Robin and Regina meet through a simulation meant for older people to live freely as their young selves once more.

Edible body paints.

Robin disguised as a priest and seeks shelter at a monastery where he meets novice Regina.

Henry and Roland plan something special for OQ's anniversary

OQ + war

First curse AU: Robin comes to Storybrooke with everyone, he and Regina meet and he instantly falls for her, but she tries to pretend she doesn’t care or isn’t affected by his charms, but fails miserably.

An "accidental" kiss.

He’s in for robbery. She’s in for murder. A prison romance blossoms when Robin Locksley notices a quiet inmate across the fence on her daily one hour out on the yard.

Robin at Regina's coronation.

Leo causes trouble for OQ

Missing year + a spell of kindness

DOQ CAOS AU: Mal & Regina as Hilda & Zelda who both fall for the Human Robin

Regina gets a happy ending massage from Robin.

Robin dealing with ED issues (temporary or permanent)

Robin surprises Regina with a puppy/cat as a birthday gift.

Every day, Regina takes her beloved sheltie to the same local dog park. And every day, she sees the same handsome blue-eyed blonde entertaining his adorable little corgi. Perhaps some day, she’ll muster the courage to say hi. Perhaps one day, it’ll not be her, but the dogs that will decide.

How to Train Your Dragon AU

AU: As a kid/teen/young adult, Person A was kidnapped. Years pass but Person A's family still hasn't lost hope and are still looking for them. Eventually the family hires Person B, the best detective in the country to find Person A and bring them home.

Regina meets Robin’s parents.

Party

Robin Locksley is the lead actor on a fantasy TV show “Happily Ever After.” Regina Mills is the typical troubled Hollywood ‘queen’ whose been cast as Robin’s new love interest only because the producers need a big name to bring in ratings and Regina needs a way to fix her reputation. They might play lovers on screen but off screen they can’t stand each other. Until they get to know one another; then real life most definitely begins to reflect fantasy...

Henry seeks Robin's advice on a very important matter

The Merry Men accept Regina into their group.

Regina is Roland’s therapist - he gets bullied at school and Robin and Regina end up liking one another.

Labrador puppies!

Regina works at an animal shelter, Robin and Roland want to adopt a dog.

A day at the beach.

Robin comes back when Robyn is 8 to find his daughter is a spoiled brat, Little John and Regina split up his children,  Hook got to come back before him and Regina split her soul.

Regina and Robin are surprised to find that Roland has magic.

A (magical) circus visits Storybrooke.

“It’s the reason why we broke up in the first place.”

“I thought you were gay.”

Sharing body heat to stay alive.

Roland is secretly Regina’s biological child.

Gender Swap version of their story. Robin is the struggling to reform Evil King. Regina is the leader of the Merry Men.

OQ/Stargate crossover.

Robin spends a whole day with Henry while Regina spends it with Roland.

“I just want to see you smile”

Visiting a castle in present day.

Bandit!OQ - one gets captured/caught, the other has to save them

OQ modern world AU with no magic.

Season 7 AU: Regina meets Robin in EF2 but he doesn’t remember her.

Robin and Regina go to John’s farm with little Roland who becomes obsessed with a little piglet named Wilbur and spider named charlotte and Regina can’t stand the farm life and has a panic every time she dresses up Roland only to have him get his clothes full of mud- can be modern AU.

Robin gives Regina a ring.

Secret relationship AU.

Stalker.

Robin consoles Regina after one of their kids yells "you're not my real mom."

North of the Wall.

Robin catches Regina doing something awful.

Regina and Robin as a king and a queen of separate kingdoms who fall in love (and unite their kingdoms).

DOQ on vacation.

Lion King AU: While hunting far to find food, Regina reunites with Robin, her childhood friend and betrothed, after years of thinking him dead when his father, the King, was mysteriously killed.

Accidental spell that makes Robin and/or Regina lustful.

Going shopping.

Storybrooke Community Theatre is putting on ‘Snow White & the Seven Dwarves’ and Regina gets cast as Snow White while Robin gets cast as Prince Charming.

"My little sibling has been talking about his/her new friend for a while now but I always thought you were an imaginary friend or something but holy shit you are definitely not imaginary (for real how are you so hot???)"

Regina forms a friendship with Little John.

Monster in the closet.

Dark!OQ's wedding.

Fake relationship AU.

Robin & Regina in a Jaime & Brienne-type relationship (pref minus the incest backstory)

OQ meet again after a long time like on this Nescafé Gold advert: https://youtu.be/jZtEXMBbaZg

Byzantine empire or Ottoman empire AU.

DOQ Roland calls Mal mom.

Three Wishes.

Robin doesn’t reach Regina in time. The crystal hits her but instead of killing Regina, it kills their unborn child.

Mother’s day/Father’s day.

Fic based on the movie “Moonstruck”.

Enchanted Forest AU: Person A is a member of the royal family. An assassination destroys their family, but Person A manages to escape and is believed to be dead. Person A finds out that their power-hungry relative (Person C) was behind the attack and wanted the throne for themself. While on the run, Person A meets Person B, who invites A to their camp. After finding out A's true identity, B and his/her friends agree to help A to stop Person C's tyranny so A can be crowned as the rightful king/queen.

Regina’s past haunts her.

Robin is known as the Vicious King whose first love Marian was murdered because his step son David couldn’t keep a secret. Tinkerbell leads Robin to his soulmate, a beautiful brown eyed peasant woman with a feather tattoo.

Game of Thrones final season watch party.

Robin, Roland and Robyn are incredibly poor, borderline homeless, Regina is the CPS caseworker assigned to investigate them.

A mysterious stranger appears in Hyperion heights, no one knows who he is, but he has a gorgeous voice and he sings at Roni’s bar every Friday, and then rides off on a motorcycle.

After Regina brings Robin back she has a problem letting him go even for a second to the point where it becomes a problem.

Robin is a cop who goes undercover in a deadly dangerous motorcycle club, Regina is the president’s old lady.

Robins soul wasn’t obliterated, but instead was sent to the worst part of Hell as punishment for loving the Evil Queen and Regina just found out.

Robin & Regina get into a fight and have near death experience and angsty make up sex after (canon).

Robin the handyman.

Hunchback of Notre Dame AU.

Regina and Robin are actors on the same Broadway show.

The occupants of Misthaven discover a new land full of murder, betrayal and deaths, a land where the dead walk, a land called Westeros.

Robin and Regina’s daughter’s first prom.

Road trip.

Robin watches Regina and their kids from heaven as they continue with their lives (canon or AU).

Regina talks to Robin for the first time.

Regina accidentally hurts Robin with her magic.

DP with Robin, David & Regina.

Regina and Robin discuss moving into the woods when the last kid is preparing to leave the nest.

The Durrells AU.

Robin isn’t dead when Regina splits herself in two.

OQ stranded on an island.

“Inside my heart is breaking, my makeup may be flaking but my smile still stays on.”

Robin cooking in Regina's kitchen for the first time.

Regina dealing with menopause.

Robin finds out Nottingham & Regina dated (or he finds out that Cora tried to hook them up in the ‘Mother’ ep).

Robin and Regina want to adopt a baby.

DOQ and quirks of living together.

Kissing Booth AU.

“Your curse is to remember.” Robin, who remembers everything, is in Hyperion Heights while Henry, Roland, Robin and Regina, who’s with Facilier, have no idea who he is.

AU: OQ as teenagers/young adults

Robin detests Snow more than Regina does.

Regina proposes to Robin.

“Robyn is eloping with the daughter of a pirate and a nature goddess, Roland is having an affair with a married princess, Henry’s mother in law is threatening to kill everyone and you still want to have a party?”

“I know you care for her, Regina, but I don’t want Zelena around my son.”

Robin and Regina join Twitter and find themselves involved in a fangirl argument over Henry’s ‘Once Upon a Time’ book.

Evil Queen introduces Wish!Robin to Roland or Robin.

Robin travels back in time with Hook & Emma.

Regina and Robin are neighbors who can't stand each other.

“You kissed Snow?!”

Beetlejuice AU: Robin and Regina are both dead and haunt a house with one another whilst trying to find a way to move on together.

Fireworks.

Regina is betrothed to a pompous son of some Lord who lives out near Sherwood Forest that she’s never met before in her life. Robin’s future intended is the spoiled daughter of Princess Cora and Prince Henry who he never even laid eyes on. But how could Regina ever love the man she was supposed to marry when she’s fallen so hard for the forest smelling peasant she met in a tavern? Not to mention how could Robin ever hope to care for some princess when he’s head over heels in love with a brown eyed peasant woman whose smile he sees every time he closes his eyes?

Robin loses his memories, Regina must make him fall in love with her again.

Perfect Date AU (Netflix)

DOQ find out they share a soulmate bond

Waitress AU

Jurassic Park/World AU

Nashville

“If i’d known then what I know now, I wouldn’t have...”

The original meaning behind the lion tattoo

Lost in time

Henry and Roland have a fight

Both Robin & Regina are hot tempered. 

Video Prompts

"I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" by Aerosmith

Pretty Woman

Loving Can Hurt

This is Me

Season 1/2/3/4/5/6/7 AU

Fight song

“Tishbite” by Cocteau Twins

Any classical music

“Don’t Treat Me Bad” - Firehouse

“Paradise” - George Ezra

“Walk Me Home” - Pink

“Here We Go” - Wild

Up Town Girl

Any song from a Disney animated movie

“Shallow” - Lady Gaga

“I’ll Be There” - Jess Glynne

Art Prompts

Historical AU

Angels & Demons

Art a favourite fic

Sunset

Rainbow

Comfort

Anniversary

The 90s

Comic book

Sherwood forest

Fire

Trouble

Romance

Hero

[gray-autumn-sky]

Laws of Attraction, Part 2

When Mal murders her husband, she turns to Regina--a former lover and defense attorney--for help.

Loosely based on the movie Adam’s Rib. 

Part 1 can be found HERE on Tumblr, and HERE on AO3. 

For @trina-deckers and art done by @laura-p-g.

They’d planned everything in as much detail as they could--and the point of that had been to make them all more comfortable and less nervous. They agreed that Mal would come over around seven with Chinese takeout. They’d eat and have some wine, and then they’d go into the bedroom--and that’s where the plan had ended.

And as she looked in the mirror, smoothing her hands over her crimson skirt, she can’t help but be nervous about what was going to happen once they were all in bed together. She worried that she wouldn’t measure up to the other women Mal had been with, that her lack of experience would be glaring and off-putting. She worried that someone would be left out or bored, or worse that one of them would have regrets when all was said and done.

She grins as Robin comes up behind her, hooking his arm around her waist and pulling her back against him. He presses a kiss to her cheek and then rests his chin on her shoulder.

“We don’t have to do this,” he says. “You can still back--”

“I want to.”

“Good,” he says, chuckling softly. “Because I really want to, too.”

“I’m just…  worried.”

“About what? We’ve talked about this and planned every--”

Taking a breath, she turns and links her arms around his neck--then, slowly, she release it as his arms circle around her waist and he presses a kiss to her forehead. “What if I’m… not good at it.”

He blinks. “You’re… good at it.”

“With you, maybe, but I’ve never…” Her eyes sink closed. “What if I’m not good for her?”

“Regina, relax.”

“But I--”

Her voice halts as she hears the front door open, and then Mal calls out a sing-song hello and announces she has fried rice and egg rolls and is starving. She lets out a shaky breath as Robin again kisses her forehead again, then takes a step back, giving her hand a little tug before leading her out of their bedroom.

“Did you get started without me?” She asks, her brow arching as she sets the brown paper take-out bag onto the table, watching as they come out of the bedroom. “Because that’s not fair.”

Robin laughs as he leans in, offering her a quick kiss before she does the same--and then, for a moment, they all just stand there.

“You, um… you said there were egg rolls?”

Mal nods. “Yeah, and extra plum sauce.” She laughs softly as Regina nods and looks to Robin as her lip catches between her teeth. “You’re nervous.”

“A little.”

“I told her she doesn’t have to be.”

“He’s right,” Mal says, reaching for her hand. “This is going to be fun.”

“I know it’s supposed to be, but I just can’t help but think--”

“Regina,” Mal cuts in, chuckling softly as her eyes briefly shifting to Robin. “Stop over-thinking it. Relax.”

“I just don’t want to… disappoint you or--”

Her voice halts as Robin’s hand presses to her back, and she turns to look at him, watching as a soft but slow smile edges onto his lips. He leans in and presses a fluttery kiss to her cheek  as his hand slips around her waist--and she grins as Mal tips her chin back toward her, and leans in, pecking her lips once as her smile brightens, and then she leans in again. The next kiss is harder--she pulls her up against her, parting her lips with her tongue as her hand pushes into her hair. She’s warm and she tastes like cinnamon--and it’s so easy to get lost in the kiss, so easy to want to see where it leads, and to let it lead where it will. Her stomach flutters with anticipation as Robin steps in closer, his lips finding a spot on her neck, just below her earlobe, that drives her crazy--and as his hand ghosts down her back to her ass, her nerves begin to fade.

She feels Mal draw in a breath and then she pulls away as Robin lifts his head--and all she can do is stand there and pout. She wasn’t ready for it to end.

“You know, suddenly, I’m not very hungry,” Mal says, grinning as she looks between them. “I think I need to work up my appetite for a bit, if that’s okay with the two of you.”

“I could be okay with that,” Robin says, his voice husky as he looks to her, watching as she nods in agreement. He takes Mal by the hand and tugs her toward him and Regina can’t help but smile at the little grins they exchange--so soft yet full of excited anticipation--and as Mal’s arm slides around her waist. “Come on,” Robin says, taking another step back as the butterflies in her stomach start to flutter again. “I think we’ve waited long enough.”

From there, everything happens so quickly--and so easily.

She and Robin both sit down on the edge of the bed, pulling Mal down between them. They all trade kisses and touches, and pull away clothing. As she pushes Mal’s shirt off of her shoulders, she dots a few kisses along her bare shoulder, watching as Mal swallows hard and tilts her head back, giving her more access to her and letting her own eyes shift to Robin--and she watches as Mal’s hand slips into his lap, rubbing him through his pants as Regina sucks harder at her neck.  

They all take their time with each other--working slowly, teasing playful and keeping the mood light. They’re all aware of the step they're taking--and they’re all aware of that once the step is taken, they’ll never be able to go back. And while that’s terrifying, it’s also exciting--and the closer they get to the point of no return, she comes to the realization that she wouldn’t want to go back.

Taking a breath, she leans back against the pillows, watching as Mal kisses Robin, and watching as Robin unhooks her bra. He breaks the kiss long enough to watch as he slowly pulls away the lacy black bra--and she grins as Mal looks back at her from over her shoulder, offering a quick little wink as Robin leans back in. Regina grins back, biting down on her lip as she slips her hand into her satin panties, watching Robin trail quick kisses down Mal’s throat, dipping lower to suck on one of her breasts as his hand kneads the other--and the last little bits of worry dissolves as she realizes how wet it makes her to see them together in this way.

Mal lets out a little sigh as she pulls away from Robin, pressing a quick kiss to his lips as she whispers something she can’t quite hear--but whatever it is, it draws a broad grin onto Robin’s lips as he shifts away from Mal and settles at her side.

Robin rolls onto his side, stroking his fingers over her arm and her hip as she turns, catching his lips between hers--and then, just as her tongue parts his lips, she feels Mal’s hands sliding up her legs and parting her knees. Her eyes widen as she turns to watch Mal, her stomach fluttering and her heart beating faster and faster as Mal’s hands caress her inner thighs as they trail upward--and her breath catches in her chest when Mal’s long fingers hook into the waistband of her panties.

Mal grins as she swallows hard, biting down on her lip and  unable to look away as she peels the panties down her legs--and again, her stomach flutters with nervous anticipation as Mal settles herself between her legs, pushing them further apart.

She hears Robin mutter something in a low, husky voice--and when she turns to look at him, she can’t help but laugh softly. He’s watching them intently as if his greatest fantasy is about to be realized--and the anticipation of it is driving him mad. His boxer shorts are down and still tangled around his ankles, and he’s stroking himself--and it seems he’s going at a painfully slow pace in hopes of pacing himself for what is bound to be a long and exciting evening.

And then, she feels Mal’s breath on her--and a little chill runs down her spine, her stomach once again fluttering as her heart beats wildly. Mal’s tongue first slips against her, she shudders softly, her jaw clenching and a smile pulling at the corners of her mouth as Mal continues to lick and suck and make her squirm--and every time her tongue flicks against her clit or her lips form around it, it takes everything in her not to explode right then and there. But if she let that happen, she realizes, this might come to an end--and she’s not at all ready for Mal to be done with her--and as she grits her teeth and grasps at the sheet beneath herself, comforted by the thought that this is just one of many nights to come for them.

She moans softly as Mal’s finger slowly slips inside of her--and then beside her, she hears Robin draw in a breath as a low oh, fuck escapes him. Turning her head on the pillows she grins at him and when he leans in to kiss her, her hand replaces his on his cock--and for awhile, she thinks they’ve found a perfectly blissful rhythm.

An orgasm rips through her--rippling through her core and making her whole body shudder, and Mal is only more encouraged by it. She continues to lick and suck as her fingers drag slowly through the sleekness between her legs, and when she comes down from her high she looks to Robin--watching the way he looks at Mal. She grins, stroking her hand though Mal’s hair as she pulls up her knees--and drawing in a breath, she watches as Mal sits up. Her cheeks flushed slightly as Mal grins at her--cocking an eyebrow seductively as if to ask if she enjoyed it--and then as she bites down on her lip, her eyes slide to Robin. She gives Mal a little nod and then edges over to allow Mal to lay down between them--and when Mal rolls onto her side and Robin’s arms wrap around her as he pulls her into a kiss, she can’t help but think how gorgeous they look, tangled in such an intimate embrace.

Robin’s hand slips into the back of her lacy underwear, somewhat awkwardly pulling them down as he kicks away his own boxers, careful not to break their kiss. She hears Mal giggle against his mouth--and there’s something terribly endearing and sexy about the way she does it. It’s a little strange to be watching them like this and she’s not sure what she’s supposed to do, other than just watch. She sucks in a breath, watching as Robin’s hand rubs over the curve of Mal’s ass--and there’s a part of her that feels like she’s interrupting--but then his other arm opens up and he motions of her to come closer.

She does--and her stomach flutters as she sits up and presses a warm kiss to Mal’s shoulder. Mal pulls back as Robin rolls onto his back, and she grins at Regina while she positions herself to straddle his waist. Regina looks down between them, her eyes focusing on Robin’s cock--watching as it practically begs for attention--and then she settles back on the bed beside him. He turns his head, grinning as he kisses her--and then, she breaks the kiss, wanting to watch him with Mal.

Her lip catches between her teeth as she watches Mal get up on her knees, watching as Robin rolls on a condom and then helps guide himself into her--and then slowly, Mal sinks down on him. Her palms press into his chest and she looks at him, grinning--and then her eyes slide to Regina, her eyes trailing down her naked body as her hips start to move.

It’s slow at first--and he holds her hips as she slides against him--slowly working him in and out of her, nearly at full length--and then, she picks up her pace, riding him hard. Their breath becomes ragged and husky--and she can’t believe how turned on she is, just watching them together. Her hand slips between her legs, rubbing absently as she watches them, pleasuring herself as they pleasure each other--and then, her breath catches in her throat and her eyes widen a little as Mal reaches between her legs. Robin grins at her as she wriggles downward, and as Mal fucks Robin, her fingers fuck her--and she feels her second orgasm quickly starting to build.

It’s easy to get lost in the moment. She’s not really focusing on anything in particular, but everything about what’s happening is so exciting and erotic, and its hard for her to remember that only a couple of hours before, she was doubting the whole thing--that a couple of hours before she was worried that this would be disappointing or that she wouldn’t know what to do or that she wouldn’t enjoy it the way she thought. She hears a low grunt escape Robin, she looks to him, grinning as she she realises how close he is to coming--and then, taking a breath, she sits up and holds her breath as she tucks her legs beneath herself and reaches out to rub her fingers against Mal’s clit--and she grins as Mal turns to look at her with wide, but encouraging eyes.

Robin comes--and Mal rocks slowly against him, Regina’s fingers pushing back and forth against her in an easy rhythm. He breathes through the orgasm, kneading his fingers at her hip as he watches Regina’s fingers rubbing against her--and nearly as soon as Mal rolls off of him, she’s in her back and Regina’s between her legs.

She doesn't think about it--she just does it, and it surprises her how intuitive it is and how into it Mal seems to be. She licks her until she’s squirming beneath her, her second orgasm coming quicker, and when she pulls away, her cheeks are flushed and momentarily, she feels a little embarrassed by her zealousness. But Mal watches her, her chest rising and falling with each labored breath as she tries to come down from her orgasm and Robin’s lips quickly find her jaw. And it’s not before long that he’s easing her onto her back to fuck her.

Neither of them last for very long--and it’s soft and lazy and sweet. He slips in and out of her, watching as she and Mal trade sloppy kisses. And when it’s done, they all lay together, breathless, tangled and quiet. There’d been a part of her that feared this part the most--the afterward when nothing could be taken back and regret might start to seep in--but it’s comfortable and she’s glad that there don’t seem to be any signs of regret.

Mal kisses her cheek as she sits up and she watches the way Robin’s hand gently rubs against the small of Mal’s back as she points to the robe folded on the dresser and asks if she can borrow it for a bit. Regina nods, telling her that it’s out for her and she grins her thanks. Mal pulls it on and retreats into the bathroom, suggesting on her way that they should heat up the forgotten take-out, and both she and Robin laugh as Mal tells them she’s fairly sure they’ve all worked up a good appetite.

“So,” Robin murmurs as he rolls onto his slide, stroking his fingers over her bare hip. “You okay?”

She nods. “Very okay.”

“You enjoyed it,” he says, a sweet little grin edging onto his lips as his eyes glint with contentment. “Or you seemed to.”

“I did,” she admits. “And you--”

“Feel the same.”

“So, you want to continue--”

“I do.”

“Good,” she says, giggling softly as she presses a quick kiss to his lips. “I do, too.”

He laughs, pressing a kiss to her forehead before getting out of bed and reaching for his own robe, tying it around himself as he pulls her robe from the hook and hands it to her. She slips into it as she gets out of bed and as she tugs at the sheets, she grins when he hands her a fresh set, helping her to change them. He pulls the quilt back up over the new sheets, fanning it out and letting it cascade down as she puts the dirty sheets into the hamper--and when she turns back to him, he catches her by the waist, pulling her into a kiss.

“Is this a private moment or--”

They both laugh as they pull away from each other, and Robin opens his arm to Mal. Regina grins as Mal comes to them, nuzzling into Robin’s side as they make plans for the rest of the night--plans that involve re-warmed Chinese take-out, a game of scrabble and a lot of cuddling on the couch.

Regina’s arm slides around Mal’s waist and Mal’s head falls to rest on hers, as they make their way into the living room to set up the coffee table and Robin goes to heat up their food--and she can't help but smile at the contentment she feels, and she wonders why they’d waited so long to have this moment.

______

Regina sighs as she rounds the corner into their bedroom, padding across the room as Robin towel dries his hair. She climbs into bed as he tosses the wet towel into the hamper, and she sighs again, this time louder as he gets into bed with her.

“What?” He blinks, as she rolls onto her side to face him. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Like what?”

“Like I did something.” She only shrugs and sighs, watching as Robin’s brow creases. “The last time you looked at me like that I left the refrigerator door open and the milk spoiled.”

At that, her eyes roll. “I wasn’t mad at you because the milk spoiled. I was mad at you because I didn’t realize that and I gave Roland sour milk in his cereal and he spit it up… all over my shoes and I was nearly late for court.” Then, a little grin tugs up at the corner of her mouth as she reaches out, rubbing two fingers over his forearm. “But I’m not mad at you now.”

“Are you sure?”

She nods. “I’m just… worried.”

“That was convincing,” he tells her, biting down on his lip. “You know, if there’s something you want to talk about--”

“I shouldn’t.”

“Oh…”

They had a rule--a rule that said they wouldn't talk about Mal’s case at home. For the most part, they’d done a good job of this. Robin was already in an awkward position and toeing a dangerous line and every time the case came up, Mal would shrink away. No matter how many times they told her they wouldn’t let her go to prison, she’d nod along and smile softly, but they knew she didn't fully believe it. If her marriage to Stefan Perrault had taught her anything, it was that life wasn’t fair--life had a way of kicking her when she was down, and it hadn’t taken long before she realized that there was no rock bottom, and she could always sink lower.

“Mal’s still asleep. I just checked on her.”

His brow arches. “She went up to nap hours ago. I was sure she’d be milling around in the kitchen by now.”

“I know, and… I’m sure this is a good thing that she’s able to sleep because I don’t think she’d been sleeping very well before she came here. It’s just…” She sighs, realizing she’s not articulating her thoughts well because she’s tired and trying too hard to be careful of what she shares, but it's impossible not to confide in him and though they’re still trying to find a balance for this new situation, she won’t shut him out. “She was so upset in my office earlier, and then she was quiet through dinner. I wanted to talk to her, and make sure she’s… as okay as she can be, given the circumstances.”

“Is that how the two of you ended up talking about Henry?”

Regina blinks. “Hen--oh. Yeah, that came up.”

“She was really upset about that,” he says, rolling onto his side to face her. “When I got home she was looking at that box of recipe cards of all the boys’ favorites, you know… the ones with the pictures… she just looked so upset.”

Regina nods. “She kept telling me that you and I were supposed to be okay and...and I know we had that rough patch after she left us, but when you compare what we went through and what she was going through, it just… seems sort of....” She sighs and her eyes press closed. “I don’t know know where I’m going with that.”

“No, I get it,” Robin says as her eyes meet his. “I felt about an inch tall when I was talking to her today. I was so angry at her for leaving. I didn’t understand how she could just… up and leave. I never considered... more than that.”

“You were hurt,” she says simply as her thumb rubs against his wrist. “And it’s not like we had a way to contact her. She was in…”

“Countries I’d never even heard of,” Robin says flatly, rolling his eyes. “I read that article a hundred times trying to find a way to reach her, to figure out where exactly she was.”

“I know. I did, too.”

He sighs, shaking his head. “And now, I… I feel guilty.”

“I do, too.”

“I feel guilty for moving on and being happy when…”

“That’s the worst part of it,” she says, her voice catching in her throat as her eyes press closed for a moment--and she thinks about all of the times she’d privately wished that Mal were there with them, all those happy moments that could have been happier. “We found a way to be happy without her.”

“I didn’t think it when we were all together, but looking back, that had to be a fear of hers… that… that you and I would decide we just wanted it to be the two of us again and--”

“But we didn’t decide,” Regina says, her eyes fluttering open. “But… I don’t think it’s fair to say that she decided it, either.”

He nods, taking a breath as she continues rubbing her fingers over his wrist. “She spent over a decade in a living hell, just a few miles away and we...sulked and then moved on with our lives.” He stops and swallows--hard and audible--before his eyes meet hers. “We didn’t fight for her.”

“I know,” Regina murmurs in reply, the ever-present knot in her stomach tightening. “That’s… that’s part of why I want to fight for her now. It’s why I have to win this case.” She pauses for a moment, chewing at her lip, fully aware that she’s teetering closer and closer to dangerous ground. “I know we’re not supposed to talk about it, but… I just keep thinking if I miss something or if I don’t explain something right, this could be it for her. I could fail her again.”

“That’s not likely,” he says as a little grin edges back onto his lips.

“But it’s going to be up to a jury that’s likely going to be primarily men, and though I would never say this to her, she did buy that gun a week before she killed him with it. There’s actually a smoking gun here and I’m just… I’m worried that once they hear that, they won’t hear anything else.” Biting down on her lip, she watches as he shifts uncomfortably. “I’m… I’m telling you this as my husband and not as…”

“I know,” he cuts in. “And...that’s if I made that argument. That’s if--”

“Stop,” she cuts in, giving him a warning look--and then she sighs. “We really shouldn’t be doing this. We shouldn’t talk about it, not like this.”

Momentarily, Robin’s eyes press closed and he nods--and she can tell he’s disappointed. They used to enjoy this--bouncing ideas off of each other, trying to figure out the opposing counsel’s next move, plotting how they’d counter. There’d been so many nights that they’d stayed up late, splitting a pot of coffee and picking at leftovers long after the boys had gone to bed, going over evidence and crafting zingers they could deliver during their opening and closing arguments. They worked well together--they fed off each other and though they had different strengths and weaknesses, they complemented each other and were practically an unstoppable pair.

Then one morning, he told her he was considering leaving the firm they’d built together. He’d given her some bullshit line about wanting to stand for justice, and though she’d first thought it was a knee-jerk reaction to a recent case they’d won--a case in which their client had definitely been guilty. She tried to reason with him, reminding him that it was just part of the job, that the prosecutor could have done a better job, but a month later, he hadn’t changed his mind and was packing up his office--and it hadn’t been until that first day when she’d walked in and saw the empty office beside hers that she realized that part of their lives was over.

“Why did you take this job, Robin?” She hears herself ask, already knowing the answer, but wishing now more than ever it could be undone. “If you hadn’t left, we’d be doing this together we’d… be on the same side, and I’d feel a hell of a lot better about my chances.”

“Your chances of winning are just as good without me. You always were the better attorney.”

“That’s not an answer.”

Nodding, he takes a breath and rolls onto his back, pulling away from her. “We’ve talked about this.”

“I know, but I still don’t get it.”

“You get it,” he says, pressing his head back into the pillow as he draws in a breath. “You just think it was the wrong decision.”

“Because it was.”

“Regina…”

“Robin,” she says, sitting up so that she’s looking down at him. “You’re a defense attorney and a damn good one. You shouldn’t be--”

“I know you think I gave you some bullshit reason,” he cuts in. “But I wasn’t lying to you when I said that I couldn’t keep getting people acquitted for crimes they’d clearly committed. I was never completely comfortable with the moral ambiguity of what we do, and… once I came down from my high horse, I’d all but accepted the job.”

“It was one case.”

“It was more than that and you know it. My heart was never really in it.”

Her brow arches. “And your heart is in this?”

“No.”

“So, how do you feel about that now?”

“Like an asshole.”

“Good.”

“I also thought it’d be fun to go toe-to-toe with you in court,” he says as a sly little grin stretches across his lips. “You know, getting each other all worked up and then… coming home and… making each other forget all about it.”

A little grin pulls onto her lips--she likes that, and she wishes that’s what he’d told her from the start. “You thought it’d be fun having me publicly hand you your ass, again and again and--”

“Well, I thought I’d win sometimes,” he says, his voice a bit indignant. “But it wasn’t about who won or who lost, it was just… something fun, something new, something different.”

“Something to keep the spark,” she realizes--again, wishing he’d told he that months ago, so she hadn’t spent the entire spring pissed off about something she couldn’t fix or change. “That’s… kinda of sweet. Why didn’t you tell me that?”

“I don’t know. I… I just… didn’t want you to get bored with me.”

“I couldn’t,” she says, laughing softly as she lays back down, this time cuddling into his side. “Are you sure there wasn’t… something else?”

“Something else?” He asks, folding his arm around her. “It really wasn’t that complicated. It was just--”

“Are you sure it didn’t feel like something was missing?”

He blinks down at her and then nods, hugging her a little closer as he presses a kiss to her forehead. “Oh.”

“And maybe you felt that way because… something was missing.”

“Yeah,” he murmurs. “Maybe.”

“I felt that, too, you know,” she tells him.

He nods. “She was alway there, even when she wasn’t.”

“Yeah,” she agrees. “Always there, in the back of my head.”

“It just seemed unfair to admit that to you though.”

“I felt the same way.”

“I never wanted you to think that you weren’t enough or that the life we’ve built together wasn’t enough.”

She blinks as she tilts her head up to look at him. “So, you decided to piss me off instead?”

A little chuckle rises up from his chest. “You’re cute when you’re pissy and--eventually, I thought you’d realize how fun it’d be to be on opposite sides of the courtroom. And it’d be spontaneous and… fun.” For a moment, he stares past her, grinning softly as a little chuckle escapes him. “I just had all these little fantasies about squaring off against you in court then coming home and pushing you up against a wall and letting my frustration out in another way.”

Her brow arches, and she has to admit, there’s definitely something appealing about that little scenario--but that little scenario, so far, is too far away from reality to actually enjoy. “Are you having fun now?”

“No,” he sighs, his frustration evident. “I guess we can just chalk this up to another stupid decision.”

“You could quit. I know you said--”

Robin shakes his head and her voice trails off. “I told you. I don’t trust Gold… especially not with Mal.” He sighs again as his fingers slide up and down over her shoulder, and for a couple of minutes neither of them says anything. Instead, she just watches as he stares up at the ceiling. “Do you think we treated her as… some kind of dirty little secret?”

“What? No.” She sits up, her brow furrow as she looks down at him. “Why would you ask that?”

“Because Mal said it,” he admits as their eyes meet. “She was upset and I told her that I didn’t think we were destined to fail, that the three of us could have worked out in the end… and she said… that.”

Regina blinks, and she can’t help but feel as though she’s been punched in the gut. “Ouch.”

“I know.”

“She… really said that? She said that we treated her like a dirty little secret?”

“Well, not… like that,” he says, pulling himself up. “She said that she wanted us to have a normal life, and that we couldn’t have a dirty little secret hiding in our bedroom.”

“Still… ouch.”

“I never really thought of it that way, but… after she said it, I couldn’t help but think that maybe we had inadvertently treated her that way.” He shrugs. “With the exception of John, no one knew.”

“That was… to protect her.”

“That was the intent.” He sighs and rubs his hand over his brow, his fingers pressing into his skin and wrinkling as he drags them back and forth. “All evening I’ve been thinking about the night John found out about our relationship with her… and the things he said...and… the things I didn’t say.”

“Well, in your defense, we were caught off guard.” Her shoulders tense with indignation. “And I don’t care that the door was unlocked. Any decent person would knocked before barging into someone’s apartment, especially so unexpectedly.”

“Yeah, well...he didn’t.”

She grimaces as the memory--a memory that still makes her uncomfortable. They’d been at home, caught up in their own little world. Mal was over and earlier in the evening they’d gotten take out from Granny’s. She’d picked it up on her way upstairs--and the half-eaten carton of tomato soup was getting cold on the on the coffee table beside the plates they hadn’t bothered to take into the kitchen when John arrived. It was raining that night and they hadn’t had a care in the world. After dinner they’d put on some music and settled on the couch together, expecting to spend a lazy evening in, enjoying their lovers’ company. Eventually, as it always seemed to, one thing led to another--and by the time John walked in on them, she was topless and straddling Robin’s lap as he kissed her neck and as she made out with an also topless Mal.

It’d been humiliating--and it would have been humiliating whether Mal was there or not.

“I just wish I’d handled it differently,” Robin tells her. “I was so worried about what he thought.”

“Well, you’ve been friends when him since you were seven.”

“Yeah,” he nods. “But I’m in love with her and the things he said about--”

“In love,” Regina murmurs as a little grin edges onto her lips as she sits up.  “You’re in love with her… as in… presently, you’re in love with her… not, you used to be in love with her.”

Robin blinks--and it's obvious he didn’t realize what he said--and then he smiles. “You’ve always known that I still have feelings for her.”

Regina nods, “But having feelings for someone or even loving someone isn’t the same as being in love with them.” Biting down on her lip, she looks down at him, watching as he pulls himself up onto his elbows. “And, that’s quite a relief because… I’m still in love with her, too.”  

She takes a breath, feeling a little flicker of excitement--she’s been thinking about this since the moment she first saw Mal in her office, thinking about what it’d be like to just pick up where they left off and pretend that the last eleven years hadn’t happened. If there’d been any doubt that she was still in love with her, it vanished completely when she spent a night holding her. And since then, she’d been tip-toeing around it, fully aware there were two other people’s feelings she had to consider. She didn’t want to let herself fall in too deep and she didn’t want to hurt either of them--but she also didn’t want to hurt herself.

“Robin, do you think that after this is all over there’d be a chance that we could… try again.”

“With Mal?”

She nods. “I know she’s… going through a lot right now, but I don’t think she ever really wanted to leave, and eventually…”

“Neither do I,” he admits. “She all but said it this afternoon.”

Regina nods. “She and I… kissed this afternoon.”

“I kissed her, too.”

“We made out in my office.”

“We made out in the kitchen.”

She blinks--and then she can’t help but laugh. Robin’s arm hooks around her shoulders and he lays back, pulling her down with him, and as he presses a kiss to her forehead and she cuddles into his side.

“So I guess it’s up to Mal then.”

“Yeah, I guess it is,” she murmurs back. “It’d be nice though, having her back… having things the way they used to be.”

“It wouldn't be the same though,” he says. “We have children now and…”

His voice trails off and she lifts her head from his shoulder. “I wouldn’t want to keep her a secret.”

“No,” he’s quick to say. “I wouldn’t want to do that.”

“They’d love her,” she murmurs softly, resting her head on his shoulder as he squeezes her a little closer--and just a little while, she loses herself in the fantasy of what it’d be like to have Mal back in their lives, as real part of their life. Roland would love her instantly--after all, how could he not love someone whose last name literally meant “of the dragons,”--and Henry was so like her in so many ways, interested in everything and obsessed with art and pictures. They could be a family--and though it wouldn’t be the traditional, conventional type--it’d be theirs and it’d be one she’d long ago stopped hoping she’d have.

_____

Robin sighs as he nurses a cup of coffee and blinks down at the notebook balances on one knee and then textbook balances on the other, and for the life of him, he can’t make heads or rails of his own writing. Grimacing, he looks up at Regina, watching as she writes out an outline on a yellow legal pad--and watching as she does so either ease.

“Can I borrow your notes? Mine are… smudged.”

Rolling her eyes, she looks up and grins. “That’s why you don’t write note in pencil.”

“I like writing in pencil. It’s easier to fix mistakes.”

“And then the pages smudge when the pages press together.” She sighs, shaking her head as he frowns down at his notes, and when he looks back up, her note book is extended to him. He takes it and looks down at the front of the composition book. It’s labeled with the course title and the professor’s name, and along the edges are little tables that she made out of tape, each leading to a particularly important part of the notes. Inside, he finds her flawless script--written in ink, and not at all smudged--and in the widened margins are questions and points she wants to make in her paper. “I’ll, uh, get this back to you in a--”

“Keep them as long as you need to,” she cuts in, her voice distant as she focuses down on the legal pad and her outline. “I’m done with them.”

“How is that possible?”

She blinks as she looks up at him. “Because while someone went out with the boys, to celebrate a semester that’s not actually over--”

“It is over, though,” he counters. “Classes have ended.”

“But we still have two papers to write and an exam.”

Frowning, he looks down at her notebook. “You could have come with us. You were invited.”

Regina laughs. “They didn’t want me to go. They wanted you to go, and thought I had to be invited for that to happen.”

“But you--”

“I’m not upset,” she cuts in. “I got a jump start on my first paper, didn’t have to share my popcorn, and didn’t have to spend an evening gritting my teeth and smiling at a bunch of men who think it’s cute that I’m in law school.” A little laugh escapes her. “I care much more about maintaining my perfect grade point average than making friends.”

“I feel guilty for going without you.”

Her eyes roll and she laughs again. “If you’re going to feel guilty, feel guilty about drinking yourself into a hangover when you’ve got this much work and studying to do this week, not about having an evening out with your buddies.”

Before he can reply there’s knock at the door and Regina’s attention shifts away from him and her outline--and he grins as she opens the door to Mal, kissing her cheek as she passes into the apartment. He watches as she sets down two suitcases--and he laughs as she announces that she’s there to spend the week with them.

“The whole week?” Regina asks, her brows arching as she looks between them. “That’s amazing, but I wish it were any other week.”

“We’ve go a few deadline and--”

“Oh, I know,” Mal says, looking between them. “That’s why this week is so perfect.”

“I’m… not following this,” he says slowly, setting Regina’s notebook on the coffee table in front of him. “It’s perfect that...you’re here but we’re crazy busy?”

“You’ll have to forgive him,” Regina says, grinning over at Mal. “He’s a bit hungover.”

“Ahhh...”

“I just think it’d be more enjoyable for all of us if Regina and I weren’t swamped with work, so we could…”

“But that’s just it,” Mal cuts in. “I want to help. I can make pots of coffee and snacks. I can go on library runs and rub tense shoulders. I’ve got a few bags of groceries in my car and,” she draws in a short breath as she hoists up a small--and seemingly heavy--black leather suitcase. “I even brought my typewriter.”

“That’s sweet,” he says, watching as Regina’s eyes light up at the mention of the typewriter. “And you’re right. That does sound kind of perfect…for Regina and I, but that doesn’t sound very fun for you.”

Mal’s eyes widen and she shrugs. “I get to spend a whole week with the two of you. What could be more perfect than that?”

“You can really sneak away for a whole week?”

She shrugs. “My family thinks I’m bird watching.”

Regina’s brows arch. “I’m sorry? What?”

“Bird watching,” Mal says again, looking between them. “Two summers ago a friend and I went up to this little cabin in Maine and I took photographs of birds and she sketched them.” She shrugs. “They think I’m doing that again.”

“Oh…”

“Won’t they want to see the pictures?”

Mal’s brow arches as he looks to Regina. “A picture of a pigeon is a picture of a pigeon. They’ll hardly be able to tell the pictures are old, especially if I develop some of them a second time.” She grins. “And that'll buy me a couple of afternoons with the two of you next week.”

“This just keep getting better.”

His heart flutters as Regina grins, hugging Mal into her side and squeezing her. “And some of us won’t take the full week to finish,” she says, laughing softly as she winks at him. “I’ll be glad to have her here when you're grumpy and pulling an all-nighter the day before the exam.”

Robin frowns, but he can’t deny it; so instead, he takes a sip of his coffee--and then gingerly, he rises up to his feet. “I’ll go grab those groceries, while you settle in,” he says, as he takes her keys from her, rolling his eyes as Regina murmurs something about just wanting to put off his paper for a bit longer.

Mal laughs gently and brushes a kiss to his cheek as he passes her--and by the time he reaches the stairs, he’s grinning like an idiot at the prospect of having week with Mal. He reaches her car and unlocks the trunk and collects three full bags of groceries---and as he mills through them, he can’t help but notice a brand new box of condoms peeking out from a pharmacy bag and tucked beneath a few small crates of berries.

Slamming the trunk closed, he goes back in, unloading the groceries and putting them in them away--and when he hears Regina laugh from the bedroom, he grabs the pharmacy bag and joins them.

A grin edges onto his lips when he enters, finding them both sitting at the edge of the bed, kissing as Mal’s opened suitcase sits forgotten behind them. He clears his throat and they pull apart, and a bit awkwardly he pulls the condoms from the bag. “The freezer seemed like a poor place to store these.”

“You brought a box of condoms?” Regina asks, looking at her with an arched brow. “A whole box.”

“What?” Mal asks, looking between them with wide eyes. “I’m staying here for a week and I know you’re both busy, but I can’t imagine that’ll mean no sex at all and… it’d be a pity if we ran out.” She shrugs. “I know that you two don’t always use them and I don’t know how regularly Robin buys them, and it’d be a shame to ruin our fun because of poor planning.”

Regina looks at her. “I… don’t think that would have to mean we couldn’t have any fun.”

“But our fun would be limited,” Mal counters. “And if we don’t end up needing them this week, we’ll need them eventually.” She shrugs as she rises up from the bed. “Besides, those ones are ribbed for a little bit of extra fun.”

Robin blinks, swallowing hard as his eyes shift away focusing on her suitcase on the bed. “And, the, uh… camera?”

“Oh, well, if my parents think I’m a few states away taking pictures of birds, I had to make it look convincing and actually take my camera.” And then her smile turns coy. “And you never know when inspiration might strike.” His brows arch and suddenly, he can’t help but let his mind wander to all the naughty things they could do with a camera. Mal laughs as she looks between them. “Are you two hungry?”

“Um, what?” Regina asks, her eyes fixed on the box in his hand.

Robin clears his throat as he sets the box on the nightstand. “I. uh… hadn’t really…”

“It’s not even nine,” Mal says. “And judging by the state of the living room, I highly doubt either of you woke up and made a big breakfast, and neither of you have the guts to bug Granny for free food in the middle of the morning rush.”

“No…”

“Okay,” she breathes out, smiling again as she looks between them. “So you two go and… do whatever it was that you were doing before I got here, and I’ll make us all breakfast.”

And then she leaves--leaving them to follow her.

Regina redirects him to the couch and back to her note book and he can’t help but grin as she sets up Mal’s typewriter at the table--and his brows arch and a little chuckle escapes him as he watches her pet two fingers over one of the keys. And when she catches him watching her, she turns and give shim a stern and serious look that never ceases to be adorable--something that both infuriates her and makes her blush.

He settles back into his chair and pushes away the thoughts that are far more fun to think about. He makes a few notes on a legal pad and starts to piece together a bit of the argument he wants to make, and thankfully, the aspirin he took when he woke up that morning starts to kick in. Every now and then, he grins as the sound of Regina’s fingers tapping on the typewriter keys or Mal humming softly from the kitchen as she makes them all blueberry pancakes--and though it’s safe to say that term papers and exams never factored into the equation when he thought about what it’d be like for Mal to spend a week with them, he can’t help but think that regardless of the timing or the situation, he’s glad to have her there with them and glad to have here there as a real part of their lives.

_____

It’s strange being in Robin and Regina’s house without them; but then again everything about this situation feels a little strange to her--even if it was a good kind of strange.

She’d missed them--for years, she’d missed them. For so long, they’d been just a few miles away and so often she wondered what would happen if she just so happened to run into them at the grocery store or the bank, or if she’d simply picked up the phone and called them. It was a fantasy she indulged in often--usually when things got really bad between her and Stefan--but she always knew it couldn't be more than a fantasy because they were too important to her to allow herself to ruin their lives. And if she allowed herself, even once, to indulge in those fantasies, that was exactly what would have happened--and really, it was a small miracle she'd gotten away with it as long as she had.

Taking a breath, she reaches for a framed photograph and she smiles at it--smiling at the photograph of Robin and Regina with their boys, all smiling and looking so happy and content--and she can’t help but think that it’s the sort of photograph that should be on the cover of a magazine. They all look so perfect. Judging by the background--a giant mound of crumpled red and green metallic wrapping paper and a hint of a pine branch in the corner of the frame, the picture was taken on Christmas morning.

Henry and Roland are wearing matching flannel pajamas--Henry’s are red and white, while Roland wears a green and yellow pair--and though it’s hard to tell, each are clutching the same penguin stuffed animal. Roland is sitting on Robin’s knee donning a bright and cheesy smile while Henry leans back against Regina’s legs wearing a smile that’s so reserved, and almost shy. Robin is holding onto Roland tightly and his chin rests atop the little boy’s messy hair while Regina’s arm is hooked around their oldest, her chin resting on his shoulder as she smiles the same bright but reserved smile.

She feels her throat tightening as a little voice in her head reminds her of what she's missed out on--but then a stronger and louder voice reminds her of just how impossible that would have been. Drawing in a breath, she swallows hard and reminds herself that tears won’t solve anything, and that their smiles should be a comfort and a reminder that the sacrifices she made we were worthwhile.

Tracing her finger over the edge of the frame, she can’t help but get lost in the  what if’s and what might have been’s--and though it’s painful, she lets her think about what it’d have been like if she’d been there that Christmas morning when the photograph was taken.

She imagines that the boys were up before the sun--giggling excitedly as they ran down the stairs, their eager footsteps serving as an alarm clock for everyone else in the house. She imagines waking with a groan, unable to believe that it’s already morning--and Robin and Regina slowly waking up beside her, muttering about the early hour and their need for coffee as they all pulled on their robes and headed downstairs to join the children, all brimming with excitement and ready to tear into their presents…

Minutes later, they’d have joined them with cups of instant coffee in their hands as Roland excitedly informed them that Santa had most certainly come the night before--evidenced not by the presents stacked beneath the tree, but by the empty plate on a table beside the fireplace. They’d all chuckles softly and nod, pretending that they hadn’t used those cookies as their reward for actually finishing gift-wrapping before sunrise.

The three of them would settle on the couch watching as the children opened presents, a mountain of brightly colored paper accumulating slowly between them. Henry would search through the presents, separating his out from the others’ and Roland would have started with the biggest that he could find. They’d have all cuddled up together and sipped their coffee, and somewhere in the middle of it all, while Henry thumbed through a new comic, while Roland tested out his new View Master, they’d have exchanged their own presents--and hers would have been the camera that the picture she was looking at was taken with.

She smiles at the false, but vivid memory, thinking about how she’d have made them all pose and how easily she’d have gone through an entire roll of film in a single morning. She jumps ahead of herself, thinking about how much fun it’d have been to develop those pictures and how she and Robin and Regina would have laid in bed together, picking out their favorites and one favorite to frame.

And then, for a fleeting moment, she lets herself imagine what that photograph might have looked like had she been there--and she pictures Regina reach out and tugging her into the photo, allowing the timer on the camera to do its job and capture a family photo that includes them all--and as she settled on the floor between the boys, she thinks of how she’d have reached up between Robin and Regina and tickled the bottom of a little foot belonging to a blonde haired, blue eyed little girl who had her father’s dimples--the girl who--

Sucking in a breath, she stops herself.

She’d let the fantasy go too far and for an all too brief moment, she’d allowed herself to consider what it’d have been like if she’d allowed herself to have them, to consider what it’d have been like to build a family with the people she loved, to consider what could have been hers… and even the fantasy is too painful to stand.

Blinking back her tears, she reminds herself that it was better this way--she could never have what she wanted, and there was no point in crying over what would never be.

Had she stayed their life would have never been normal. Robin and Regina would never have had a normal marriage and no matter how hard they tried, they’d never have been able to keep her a secret. People would have found out and they wouldn’t have understood--and though they might have been able to handle that, it’d have been especially unfair to their children.

Swallowing the lump at the back of her throat, she sets the picture down and bats her hands over her eyes--she can’t cry over this, she decides, and though she’s not sure what, she knows she needs to go and do something else--and when she turns, she jumps back at the sight of Robin, standing at the threshold with his hands in his pockets.

“I didn’t mean to startle you,” he says, “I, um… I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize,” she replies, averting his eyes in an effort to hide her tears. “It’s your house and--” She pauses, looking up at him as her lip catches between her teeth as she realizes the time. “It’s three-thirty in the afternoon and… you’re here.”

“It is, and I am.”

“Not that I have any opinion on the matter, but shouldn't you be at work?”

Nodding, he sighs. “Yeah, I just… I couldn’t quite stay there today.”

“No?”

“No,” he tells her, as a little grin edges onto his lips as he comes into the room and sits down on the arm of the couch. “But I have this case that’s… slowly eating away at my soul.”

“Oh,” she murmurs. “Sorry about that.”

“It’s not your fault.”

Her brow arches. “Actually, I’m pretty sure that it is. I murdered my husband, after all, and I assume that’s the case that’s eating away at you.”

Robin blinks. “You have to stop saying that to me.”

“It’s true. I did.”

Robin shrugs dismissively and his smile brightens as he comes toward her. “Besides that I knew that my wife and I have this beautiful house guest who I didn't get the chance to see this morning.” She laughs and rolls her eyes as he reaches for her hand, giving it a soft little squeeze. “And I missed her.”

She grins and looks away, chewing at her lip--and it feels so nice to be here with him, so nice to have him flirting and being sweet and--

She stops, trying to clear her thoughts, fully aware that she was getting ahead of herself again--just like she’d gotten ahead of herself the other day when she’d kissed Regina in her office and just like she’d gotten ahead of herself when she'd kissed him in the kitchen.

Taking a breath, she looks away from him, trying to maintain her composure--and that’s when he reaches for her, his hand touching to her arm and forcing her to look at him, and when she does she finds that his eyes are full of concern. She swallows again as he rubs her arm gently. He doesn't say anything, but he stands there, patiently waiting to see if there’s something she wants to talk about--and though she’s not sure what she could possibly say to explain herself, just being near him this way is a comfort.

The tears welling in her eyes spill down her cheek and her face scrunches, her cheeks flushing in embarrassment--and again, he says nothing, instead, he pulls her into his arms, holding her and letting her cry.

For awhile, they just stand there with her crying into his chest and him holding her close, stroking his hand comfortingly over her back. He murmurs sweet nothings into her ear--his voice so soft and tender as he tells her that everything’s going to work out, that she’ll be okay and that he’s glad that she’s there. After a little while, he leads her over to the couch and she cuddles into his side, letting him hold her even after her tears have stopped.

She smiles a bit shyly as she wipes away her tears, and Robin smiles sweetly, as he hugs her a little closer and presses a kiss to her hair--and then, before she has a chance to overthink it, she leans in and kisses him--pressing her lips to his and parting his lips with her tongue. He’s quick to respond, letting his hand push into her hair as he draws in closer, pulling her deeper into the kiss.

At some point--she’s not even sure when or how--he pulls her into his lap, and she smiles into his kiss as her fingers rub over his stubbly cheeks. One of his arms stays wrapped around her and the other slides down, his hand rubbing over her ass--and she’s not quite sure what it is, but she feels the heavy feeling in her chest lightening as her shoulders relax. Her hand slide into his suit coat and--

“Hello?”

Everything in her tenses as she hears Regina’s voice--and her thoughts reel back to one particular evening after a dinner party when she’d convinced one of the wives of one of Stefan’s business associates to go upstairs with her, and she can’t shake the feeling that had come over her when the woman’s husband walked in on them or the desperation and fear she’d felt when she pleaded with him to keep what he’d seen a secret, blaming too much champagne and boredom for their indisgression. And though this moment is entirely different, she can’t stop herself from feeling that same fear and desperation as she remembers Stefan’s hard eyes on her the rest of the night or how she’d been so sickly worried--and rightfully so--about what her stupidity might bring upon herself at his hand.

“Oh… oh my…” Mal pulls back and her cheeks flush as Robin blinks, his brow furrowing as he feels her tension building as her heart starts to race. His hands stroke gently along her back and she feels tears burning once again in her eyes as Regina sinks down beside them, unable not to notice how upset she is. “It’s okay,” she tells her as her hand joins Robin’s on her back. “It’s fine. You’re not doing anything wrong.”

“But I… I mean, we… we’re not….” Her eyes press closed and her cheeks flush at her inability to even explain what she’s thinking and feeling. “I just didn’t really know how you… um… felt about…”

“You and Robin?” Regina asks, her fingers still stoking lightly against her back. “I feel the same way I always have about the two of you.”

“I just… we haven’t talked about it and…” She draws in a shaky breath. “I’m sorry. As usual, I didn't think. I just--”

“It’s completely fine. You don’t have anything to apologize for.”

“Maybe we should talk about this,” Robin says as he looks to Regina, offering her a soft little smile that she returns. “I think we might need to, just to make sure we’re all on the same page.”

“Yeah,” Regina says. “After dinner, I think.”

At that, a soft chuckle escapes him. “Is that my cue?”

“No,” Regina replies, laughing softly. “I’ve got dinner. You take care of her.” Mal watches as she winks and then, her breath catches as Regina leans in, kissing her softly on the lips, pulling back and nuzzling her for a quick moment before rising up from the couch. “I hope you're both in the mood for lasagna.”

Mal feels herself nod as she chokes out a reply that she barely hears.

“Or you could join us,” Robin suggests. “We could order take-out and you could cuddle up here with us until it arrives.”

“Ooh, that’s tempting,” Regina tells him as she leans in and pecks his lips. “But I already went to the meat market and got the hamburger, and I picked up some fresh lettuce and tomatoes, and some bread from the bakery.” She shrugs. “I’ll just need one of you to pick out some wine in a little bit.” Laughing softly to herself, she straightens herself and smoothes her hands over her skirt. “Besides, I want to do a little prep for an upcoming court date and it’d be really helpful if a certain Assistant District Attorney were distracted. It bodes well for me.”

Robin sighs and his eyes roll--and Mal can’t help but notice the way he tenses at that.

“You’re sure?”

“Positive,” she tells him with a nod, her hand ghosting over Mal’s back . “I’ll let you know when I need you, so until then… carry on.”

They both watch her go--and for a few long seconds, neither of them says anything. It occurs to her that she should probably get up and go help in the kitchen--that’d be safer and less emotional and it’d give her something to do with all of the nervous energy pent up inside of her--but then Robin shifts her off of his lap and to his side as he pulls her head to his shoulder, pressing a soft kiss to the top of her head. It’s so easy being here with him, letting him hold her and comfort her without ever making her admit the things she can't quite bring herself to say aloud. And then, she can’t help but nuzzle closer.

“You’re safe here,” he tells her simply. “No one can hurt you here.”

“That’s...a nice thought,” she says. “Except it’s not entirely true.”

“Sure it is,” he insists. “You’re surrounded by people who love you.”

She nods. “It’s too complicated for it to be safe and sooner or later you’ll realize it’s too much--”

“Don’t do that,” he cuts in. “Don't sell yourself short or let yourself think that Regina and I don’t still love you, or that we don’t want you here.”

“I know you both care--”

“Mal…”

“In a perfect world, it might work, but this world is far from that and I don’t want you or your children to be hurt by… me complicating your lives.”

He sighs, holding her a little closer as she cuddles in, allowing him to hold her. She feels him draw in a breath, like he’s about to say something, but no words come, and for that she’s grateful. She’s not ready for an argument--especially when she’ll have to make a case for something she doesn't want or believe in.

_____

Robin pouts as he watches Regina and Mal come out of the bedroom--still giggly and flushed in their loosely tied robes, still completely caught up in each other. Mal’s arm is loose around Regina’s waist, and Regina’s head is pressed to Mal’s shoulder, and as annoyed as he is that he’s been stuck studying while they’ve been having fun together in the bedroom, he has to admit, they’re quite adorable together and that makes it hard for him to stay annoyed for very long.

They disappear into the kitchen and he hears the tap turn on and the stove ignite, and as he attempts to return his attention to his notes, Regina laughs out. He looks back at the kitchen door, grinning as he imagines

Regina lifting herself onto the counter as Mal fills the kettle, and then as she turns away from the stove, he imagines Regina laughing as she hooks her leg around Mal’s hips. He pictures them, teasing each other with little nips and pecks as they wait for the kettle to boil, and he pictures Regina’s far-too-dramatic pout when the kettle whistles and Mal pulls away.

For the better part of the last two months, Mal has been a part of their relationship. What started out as a friendship between them all, quickly grew into something more--and by the time they were willing to acknowledge what they were all feeling, she’d already become something of a constant in their lives. She was an easy fit--likely easier than any of them thought she’d be. From the start, they’d all got along so well, and from the start, they’d been fast friends--and even now, that friendship was more than evident and only seemed to strengthen as they grew closer.

Truthfully, when he’d made the decision to propose the idea of inviting Mal into their relationship to Regina, he wasn’t entirely sure what he was suggesting--he didn’t know if that meant the three of them or simply combination of the two of them, or if he was giving her permission to explore a side of herself that she’d kept tucked away and barely even acknowledged to herself. He knew there were people who enjoyed the freedom of open relationships--not that he knew any of them personally--and he also knew there were people who’d been hurt by them--or, at least he imagined that there were. It was complicated and it was unconventional, and he knew there were risks involved. He worried about ruining their friendship with Mal, he worried about things changing between him and Regina. He knew that there could be hurt feelings and flares of jealousy, that their friends and families wouldn’t understand--but when the three of them were together, none of that seemed like a possibility for them.

He loved seeing Regina and Mal together--together, in any way. Almost as much as he loved being with them--in whatever way a specific moment would allow.

He enjoyed catching their stolen moments. He enjoyed the way they’d laugh together at a private joke or the way one of them would sneak a quick kiss. He enjoyed catching a glimpse of one of them taking the other’s hand or the way they’d cuddle up together on the couch--and he enjoyed that they let him be a part of those moments, and that he could have those sorts of moments with each of them, too.

He and Regina had only been dating a few months when she’d drunkenly confessed to him in a game of Truth or Dare that she was also attracted to women. Fueled by too much alcohol, he’d asked her a series of questions--asking if she’d ever been with another girl or even kissed one, and to each question, she replied with a shy and almost regretful “no.” The next day, when the liquid courage had worn off, she’d barely been able to look him in the eye. Her cheeks had flushed as she stumbled through a lie that served as an explanation and when he’d told her that it didn’t bother him, she’d stared at him in disbelief.

After that day, they didn’t talk about it again--and then one night, he’d taken her out to the cinema and she’d been dazzled by the deep-voiced and hooded-eyed Lauren Bacall. By that point, years had passed and they were far more comfortable with one another, and they’d had a much more serious and mature conversation about her sexuality. But still, even then it’d been something so abstract and something she distanced herself from.

And then, they met Mal.

Mal was real and tangible, and together they were beautiful and sweet, sexy and fun--and with her, Regina was able to discover and embrace a part of herself she’d long kept hidden away.

“You’re still not done?” Regina asks as she comes into the living room, nursing a cup of tea.

Robin’s eyes roll and he smiles at Mal as she hands him a steaming mug of tea before sitting down beside Regina and curling her feet beneath herself. “Nearly,” he grumbles. “It was a little harder to concentrate with, um… the sound effects coming out of the bedroom.”

“You could have joined us,” Mal says, sipping her tea. “I mean, if you weren’t being produc--”

“He can join us once he’s ready for that exam.”

Robin chuckles as Mal frowns. “Everyone deserves a little break,” she says, looking between them. “Sometimes breaks can be invigorating.”

“He had his break,” Regina says, arching her brow as she looks pointedly at him. “When he was making a little house out of my index cards.”

His eyes narrow as he feels his shoulders tense up a little. “It was a castle.”

“And that makes all the difference,” Regina says, chuckling softly as she takes a sip of her tea. “Seriously though, it’s Constitutional Law. It’s not that--”

“Says the history major.”

Regina’s eyes roll. “I didn’t tell you to take this class. You were the one who thought it’d be fun it we signed up for the exact same classes for our last semester, remember? You could have taken some sort of science class that let you… play in the dirt or-- ”

“Okay,” Mal cuts in, her voice rising over Regina’s. “There’s no need to argue over what you could or couldn’t have taken. It’s done now and--”

“It’s just… boring,” Robin sighs. “It’s not like--”

“You can do anything to change that,” Mal interjects, giving her a look that’s somehow both soft and stern. “You’ve been at this for hours, and I think you’re going a little stir crazy.” Blinking, she turns to Regina. “And just because you can power through anything and barely need to study, doesn’t mean--”

“I don’t not need to study. I just study a little bit every--”

“Regina, that’s not the point,” Mal says. “The point is, I think you could both use a little break.”

Robin tosses down the index cards. “Isn’t that what you two were doing in the--” Mal’s eyebrows arch and his voice faces. “Never mind.”

“When is the exam?”

“Monday.”

“Well, it’s only Saturday now, and it’s well-past dinnertime,” Mal tells them as she sets her tea down onto the coffee table. “So, I think you should call it quits for the night, and,” she blinks and turns to Regina. “I think you should let him.”

Regina pouts. “You’re kind of bossy.”

Laughing, Mal shakes her head and leans in, pecking Regina’s lips. “I thought you like that about me.” Robin grins as Mal pulls back and he watches Regina bite down on her bottom lip. “Or that’s how you felt about a half an hour ago.”

“I was… a bit… well…”

Robin laughs as Regina’s cheeks flush, and once more, Mal leans in and pecks her lips--and then, tightening her robe, she rises up from the couch. “I’m going to make us all some popcorn,” she says decidedly. “You two should find something for us to listen to.”

“Oh, CBS is airing a special on World News Tonight about--”

“No,” he and Mal both say in unison as Mal disappears into the kitchen--and he can’t help but chuckle as Regina pouts and sips her tea.

“You should just be grateful it’s Saturday and The Guiding Light isn’t on.”

“Oh, that is lucky for me.”

A little grin pulls onto Regina’s lips. “You like it. I know you do.”

“I don’t have much of a choice.”

“Is that why you always have to hover when it’s on.”

Taking a sip of his tea, he avoids eye contact. “It’s a small apartment. It’s impossible not to have.”

“Sure.”

Laughing, he pushes himself up from the armchair and joins her on the couch, stretching out his legs so that his feet rest on the coffee table. He reaches for the newspaper as he folds one arm around Regina, smiling softly to himself as he skims the weekend listings for programming.

“Hey,” he murmurs. “In a few minutes, Bing Crosby is going to be performing with Tommy Dorsey and his orchestra. It should last about an hour.”

“I like Bing Crosby!” Mal call from the kitchen. “Actually, I love Bing Crosby.”

“Me, too,” Regina says as she cuddles into his side. “I think we have a winner.”

“It appears so.”

“Did the note cards help?” she asks, peering up at him with wide eyes. “I’ll study with you tomorrow morning, if you want.”

“I think I’m ready,” he admits. “I just… hate these exams. They’re so long and Professor Hopper just… makes me uncomfortable.”

Laughing softly, Regina looks up at him, pulling herself up and turning to face him as his arm hooks loosely around her hip. “He’s such a sweetheart.”

“I know,” Robin murmurs. “He’s always smiling and… nodding encouragingly.” He chuckles softly as Regina’s brow arches. “It’s condescending.”

“It’s nice.”

“It’s fake,” he insists. “No one is that nice. I always expect him to hand back my blue books and laugh as he tells me I’ve failed.”

“He wouldn't.”

“And he flirts with you.”

At that, her eyes widen and her lips part. “No, he doesn’t.”

“He does. He likes you.”

“That’s because I always do the reading.”

“And because you raise your hand to answer every question.”

Laughing softly, her eyes narrow. “Are you arguing your point or mine?”

Rolling his eyes he ignores the question. “At his last lecture, he clearly checked you out when you were coming into the room. He didn’t even try to hide it.”

“Are you… jealous?”

“No,” he bristles, clearly lying. “I’m not jealous.”

She seems stunned and her jaw drops. “You are!”

“No.”

“Robin…”

“I am not jealous.” Regina’s brow arches as he bristles again. "I’m not!”

“Are you talking about me?” Mal asks, her voice even but, her eyes wide and cautious as she comes into the living room, hugging a large bowl of popcorn to her middle. “I didn't mean to interrupt or--”

“No,” Robin cuts in. “One of our professors has the hots for Regina.” A little tighter than necessary.

A little grin stretches over her lips as her brow arches and she looks to Regina. “Well, that’s no surprise.”

“Mal!”

“Oh, come on, Regina,” Mal says, handing Robin the bowl of popcorn as she crouches down in front of the radio, turning the dial back and forth until she hits the station. “He’d be crazy not to have the hots for you. I mean, look at you.”

Robin grins as Regina’s cheeks flush.

“The first time I saw you, I couldn't take my eyes off of you.”

“Maybe that’s because I was staring awkwardly at you.”

Mal laughs as she turns up the volume and then she joins them on the couch. He can’t help but grin as she lays across the couch, her head in Regina’s lap and her long legs draped over the arm of the chair. He grins was he watches Regina’s fingers comb through Mal’s hair as an announcer welcomes listeners to the show.

“He’s not my type, anyway,” Regina says after a few minutes.

“What?”

“Dr. Hopper,” she says, looking over at him. “He isn’t my type.”

“Oh no?”

Mal tips her head back and momentarily, their eyes meet as her fingers twist around the silky belt of Regina’s robe. “And what exactly is your type?”

Robin grins as Regina’s cheeks flush slightly as she chews at her bottom lip, looking slightly embarrassed and slightly perplexed, and as Mal’s hand slips through the slit of her robe and up her thigh. “I, um… I think you both know that I prefer blondes.”

“Yeah?” Robin asks, his fingers rubbing over her robed arm, slowly but surely loosening it--and suddenly they all seem very uninterested in Bing Crosby and whatever orchestra he’s performing with. “And why’s that?” His brow arches as he shifts himself closer and slides his lips along the crook of her neck. “Any particular reason?”

He feels her breath catch in her throat as she turns to him, slipping her hand up over his stubbly cheek as a grin pulls onto her lips. “Oh,” she murmurs. “Well that’s easy.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” she nods, brushing her lips over his, teasing him as she pulls herself back, stopping him from taking her lips in his. “They’re much more fun.”

And then, she draws him back, kissing him hard as Mal pulls her robe open--likely intent on unnecessarily proving her right.

_____

Regina grins as she looks back over at Mal, watching as she dries the dishes that Robin washes—and as she watches, she feels her heart growing heavy at the glimpse of what their daily lives might have been.

“Well, everything’s put away,” Regina says, clearing her throat as she puts the last Saran-wrapped container into the refrigerator. “And no one’s been poisoned, so I’ll take this as a win.”

“Yet,” Robin teases, grinning.

She laughs as Mal swats her hand at his arm. “Don’t do that. Dinner was lovely.”

“It was,” he agrees, looking between them. “I always love your lasagna.”

Regina’s eyes roll as she steps toward them, grabbing them each by the hand and tugging them toward her. “And what would the two of you say to a nightcap?”

“Oh, I shouldn’t--”

“Mal, you had a half a glass of wine,” Regina cuts in. “And so what if you get a little tipsy? We’re in for the night.”

Biting down on her lip Mal’s eyes shift between them. “I’m struggling to make good choices sober these days, so--”

Robin’s arm slips around her waist and Regina's thumb rubs gently at the back of her wrist. “Is… is this about what I walked in on this afternoon?’

Mal sighs, and she can see her struggling--wanting to pull back and away from them, but not enough to actually do it. “I shouldn't let things… get so…” Her voice trails off and her eyes press closed momentarily. “It’s just hard to…” Her eyes open and she shrugs as her eyes drop down to Regina’s fingers pressing gently at her skin. “To be with the two of you, but not be with the two of you.”

“Who says you can’t?” Robin asks, his voice soft and sweet. “Why can’t you… indulge a little? We’re all willing participants.”

“I got carried away this afternoon,” Mal says, averting the question. “And the other day in your office, and… then in the kitchen. I need to do better about--”

“Why not?”

“Regina,” Mal sighs. “We can’t--”

“Why?”

“It won’t work,” Mal tells her with a shrug as her eyes fall away, focusing again on Regina’s fingers rubbing gently at her wrist. “When this is all over--”

“You’re going to leave again.”

“I have to,” she says simply. “I just… hope I have a choice in where I end up.”

“And you can’t choose to stay,” Robin asks as his arm slips around her waist and he draws her back against him--and Regina smile as she watches Mal lean into him. “What if you chose to stay here?”

“That’d be too complicated. It’s… it’s why I left in the first place.”

“Mal…”

“I was always going to marry him, Regina,” Mal says, looking back up at her and letting their eyes meet. “It was always meant to be temporary.”

“I don’t agree.”

“Regina, what did you think was going to happen? I didn’t have a choice in marrying him. I had to do it, and--”

“People have affairs, Mal. You were already having an affair. Your marriage would have been--”

“A complication.”

“A technicality,” Regina counters.

“We could have found a way to make it work,” Robin adds. “I… I think we still could find a way to make it work.” Taking a breath, Mal pulls away from both of them, pushing her hand into her hair as she turns her back to them. “I… I don’t think either of us are saying you have to make any permanent decisions, but it’s clear that you want to be here and it’s clear that there are still feelings--”

“Of course there are,” she agrees, her voice small and barely audible. “Feelings don’t just… turn off when they’re inconvenient.”

“Then, let us--”

“It’s not fair,” Mal counters. “It’s not fair to any of us.”

“It seems most unfair to you,” Regina says, her eyes shifting to Robin. “You’re going through a rough time right now, and--”

“There’s a reason I couldn’t have carried on an affair any longer, Regina,” Mal cuts in, her voice stronger now. “It wasn’t just unfair to the two of you, it was unfair to me, too--and every time I left the two of you, it got harder and harder.” She stops and draws in a shaky breath and they can both tell she’s struggling against her tears. “I was teasing myself,” she says, her voice cracking. “I was teasing myself with everything I couldn’t have.”

“And who says you can’t have us? Who says you can’t have us now?”

“It’s… not that simple. You have a family now, and a life, and… I can’t fit into that. I don’t fit.”

“Maybe we could talk about it?” Robin asks, stepping up behind her and pressing his hand to her back. “Maybe we could come up with… something that works for all of us, at least for now.”

For a while, Mal doesn’t respond--and the silence between the three of them is practically tangible. It’s so hard seeing Mal this way. She’d always been so carefree, someone who’d lived in the moment and didn’t regret the things that made her happy--yet now, she seemed so afraid and so convinced that she didn’t deserve those things, that she wasn’t worth the complication.

“For now?” She asks, her voice still small and unsure. “As in… just while I’m here.”

“If that’s all you can handle,” Robin says, his eyes shifting between them. “We’ll take it one day at a time.”

“And… at the end of this… if I… if I decide to walk away… then, you’ll both…”

“Respect your decision,” Regina says, nodding as her chest tightens. “As long as the decision is yours.”

Mal nods and draws in a breath, slowly releasing it as her eyes pinch closed. “Okay,” she says. “We can… talk about that.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” she nods. “I suppose it… it wouldn’t hurt to, um… talk it out and lay some ground rules.”

Regina grins and that tightness in her chest begins to loosen, replaced by the soft fluttering of hopefulness--and when she looks to Robin, she can see the same hope reflected in his soft grin and sparkling eyes. Reaching for Mal’s hand, she gives her a gentle tug toward the living room.

Robin makes them cocktails--bourbon, club soda and a little lime, once a favorite of theirs--and Mal sits down in an armchair beside the couch, maintaining some distance as Robin sits down beside Regina.

For a few long seconds, it seems that no one knows where to start--and then, Mal clears her throat.

“So, it seems obvious that you two have discussed this, already.”

“We have,” Regina says, nodding. “A little.”

“We’d have included you, but--”

“No, this is… this is a conversation that the two of you needed to have alone, first.”

Regina’s eyes narrow a little as she looks to Robin, remembering the “dirty little secret” comment from the other day--and she feels an ache settle at her core. “Our relationship isn’t more important than--”

“You two are married,” Mal cuts in. “You were always the couple and I was… the extra one.”

“That’s not how we saw it.”

“It’s how it was though,” Mal say easily, taking a quick sip of her drink. “And now you have children to consider, a family that--”

“That you should have always been a part of,” she replies, her voice piquing defensively as she stares a Mal.

“And could still be a part of, if you wanted to be,” Robin says as his eyes slide to Regina his hand slips over her knee, and a soft grin edges onto his lips as he looks to Mal. “But I think we’re all getting ahead of ourselves.”

“Right,” Regina nods, drawing in a breath. “So, let’s worry about what’s to come later on… well, later on.”

“Okay,” Mal murmurs with a nod. “I… I can try to do that.” She takes another, longer sip of the drink. “And since the two of you have already talked about this, what exactly do you have in mind?”

“Well, in the immediate, we want to be here for you,” Regina’s quick to say. “We want to support you through this.”

“You are,” Mal says, a soft grin, edging onto her lips. “You’re defending me and--”

“I’m not,” Robin says flatly. “I’m doing quite the opposite.”

“Well, you can’t help that,” Mal says with a shrug. “You’ve both been… kind.”

“Kind,” Regina repeats as her brow arches. “I… I think we can all agree that, regardless of whatever feelings we have for each other, we’re friends, right?”

“Of course.”

“Then… let us be your friends.”

Mal’s eyes narrow. “Friends don’t make out on couches or in kitchens.”

“And what about in bedrooms?” Regina asks, her brow arching coyly as Mal’s eyes widen a bit. “Look, we don’t have to put labels on it. We don’t have to make any life-altering decisions. But we can be there for you, in whatever ways you need us.”

“I remember we were both quite good at taking your mind off your troubles,” Robin says as a soft chuckle rises into his voice. “And, I think you could use a bit of that now.”

Mal blinks as she looks between them, slowly shaking her head--and then, she laughs. “So, you… want me to go to bed with the two of you.”

“If you want to.”

“It wouldn’t have to be… sexual,” Regina says, with a shrug. “Unless you want it to be.”

“It could be whatever you wanted it to be,” Robin adds. “We just… want to take care of you and… love you a little bit.”

“When was the last time someone did that for you?”

“Yeah, when was the last time someone rubbed your back until you fell asleep or held you through the night or woke you up with breakfast in bed or…”

“Made you scream with pleasure until you couldn’t think of anything other than how good you felt?”

Again, Mal’s eyes widen. “You two are… impossible.”

Regina grins, leaning forward and touching her fingers to Mal’s knee. “And just so you know, actions speak louder than words, so as much as you protest about not wanting this, you’ve shown us that you do.” She offers a quick little wink before leaning back. “You don’t just… accidentally make out with people.”

Mal’s lip catches between her teeth, and a hint of a grin edges across her lips. “You could… do that with… no strings attached?”

“I think we could see where it goes,” Robin tells her. “And if you decide we aren’t want you want, then we’ll have no choice other than to respect it.”

“We won’t like it,” Regina adds. “But we’ll have to respect it.”

“Just… give it a shot.”

“What? Like a… trial period?”

Regina bites down onto her lip at the unintentional pun--and then, when Mal giggles softly, she reaches for her hand, easily pulling her up from the armchair and down onto the couch between her and Robin. Robin takes their drinks, setting them onto the coffee table and then leans back against the cushions, watching as Regina’s hand slips over Mal’s hip. Momentarily, her eyes meet Robin’s, and they exchange grins just before he leans in, peppering kisses along the crook of Mal’s neck, and when she leans in, brushing her lips over Mal’s, all she can think of is how right it feels to be with both of them this way again--and how much it’ll hurt if they lose Mal all over again.

_____

They didn’t typically go out on dates. Staying in was just easier.

But it was the end of spring, and the weather was finally warming up. The semester was over and the little town that surrounded the university was clearing out as students went home to their families, and even the few who were hanging around to take summer classes had retreated for a small break before their new classes began--and when Mal showed up early that morning announcing that, finally, after two weeks of family obligations that had kept her away from them, she was theirs for the weekend.

And she wanted to do something.

Robin glanced to Regina quickly, scrunching his nose as he looked back to Mal, and his voice was full of regret as he told her that he’d promised to help Grahm move out for the summer. He hated to disappoint her and he hated to sacrifice the limited time they had with her, but Mal just grinned and squeezed his hand and offered a quick wink, telling him she’d let him make it up to her later, and until then, she and Regina could have a girls day. He’d grinned as he turned her attention to Regina-and Regina’s cheeks flushed adorably.

He’d spent the day with Graham and Jefferson, drinking beers, packing up boxes and hauling furniture into Graham’s pickup--and every now and then, his mind would wander to Regina and Mal, and he wondered what they were up to…

When he returned to the apartment, they weren’t there, so he’d retreated into bathroom for a quick shower. A slow smile pulled onto his lips as he plucked a note off of the mirror. It was in Regina’s tight-but-loopy script, telling him to make sure to wash up and put on something nice so that they could go out that evening; and, then in a looser and loopier script, Mal added they had a surprise for him. He laughed softly to himself as he stuck the note on the outside of the door so that the steam didn’t make the ink run, then switched on the water as he undressed and considered all the things a surprise outing might entail…

“Hey you,” Regina says, grinning as her eyes lingering over him as he steps out of the bathroom in only a towel. “As much as I’m enjoying that look, you’ll need to put clothes on.”

Leaning in, he pecks her lips. “Damn. I was hoping I was over dressed.”

“You will be for later tonight,” Mal says, peeking into the room. “But Granny has a pretty strict rule about her customers wearing pants.”

“I thought the phrase was ‘No Shirt, no shoes, no service’. He says, laughing as he pulls open closet door. “There’s no rule about pants.”

“You wanna argue with her?” Regina asks, arching a brow. “Because I don’t, and I like to argue.” Robin grabs a pair of slacks. “No,” Regina murmurs. “The gray ones.”

“The navy ones are…”

Her nose scrunches. “I never took those to the cleaners. They smell… musty.”

“Oh,” he says, shrugging as he watches her grab her curling iron from the bathroom and hold it up so Mal can see it. “This one?”

“Perfect!” Mal tells her as her eyes slide to Robin. “You can’t come out until we say you can, deal?”

He blinks. “Deal.”

Regina giggles as she presses another quick kiss to his cheek as she hurries through the room, and Mal winks as she pulls the bedroom door shut, leaving him amused and perplexed as he gets dressed. He chooses his gray slacks and white button up, and he hears a little squeal escape Mal as he plucks a thin, knitted sweater vest from the hanger, pulling it over his head. He smooths it out as he looks in the mirror, looking at the yellow, blue, and red rows of diamonds as he considers a tie, eventually settling on a French blue one that Regina says brings out his eyes.

Though he can’t quite make out what they’re saying, it makes him smile, and it also indicates that they’re nowhere near ready for him, so he takes his time on his hair, trying to get that front coif just right--something he’s always struggled to do, and something Mal has always teased him about.

Finally, there was a light knock at the door, followed by Mal’s quick giggle--and when he opened the door, his breath caught in his throat as he took in Mal. She was wearing a white dress with big, pink and purple roses. It had a tight pencil-skirt and a tight bodice, and the fabric bunched and criss-crossed over her chest, and dainty little cap sleeves covered her shoulders. Her blonde hair fell in loose waves and her pink lipstick made her smile look even brighter.

“You look--”

“Wait til you see Regina,” she cuts in as she grabs his hand. “We did a little shopping this afternoon, and,” she bites down on her lip. “This dress was made for her.”

She drags him into the living room, and his jaw literally drops at the sight of Regina--she’s absolutely stunning in a red dress with a deep V-neckline and a patch of black-and-white polka fabric covering up her cleavage. The bodice of the dress is tight, hugging her stomach and embellished with six buttons. The skirt flares out at her hips and her feet sit in a pair if low-heeled red-leather pumps--and as his eyes trail upward, she grins nervously, and that’s when he notices the red rose tucked into a twist of her hair.

“What do you think?” She asks, biting down on her bright red lip, touching her finger to a curl pinned up opposite the flower before letting them fall to the flipped up ends. “I know it’s--”

“Gorgeous,” he manages.

“Isn’t she, though?” Mal says, slipping her arm around his back. “Spin around,” she instructs as she hugs herself into his side. “This is my favorite part.”

He grins as Regina’s eyes roll and her cheeks flush a little--and then, she spins, and her skirt flares out and between he can see the black and white polka dot fabric between the pleats. He laughs a little as he steps forward, taking her hand and spinning her.

“So, you like it?” She asks as his arm slips around her. “It’s not… too much?”

“No,” Mal answers. “It’s perfect.”

“I’d have to agree,” Robin says, looking from Regina to Mal as he holds out his hand to her. “You’re both gorgeous… no matter what you’re wearing.” A grin pulls onto his lips as he he looks back to Regina. “But that dress is… just…”

“Stunning,” Mal supplies.

“Yes, stunning.”

Regina smiled--beamed, actually--as she took a step back and looked down at herself. Then, taking a breath, she informed him of their plan for the evening. They’d have dinner at Granny’s--burgers and shakes--and then head to the cinema. They’d narrowed it down to two and from there, he could decide--For Whom the Bell Tolls or Madame Curie--and Mal’s brow arched as she leaned in and whispered that the later was a docu-drarma, and he’d chuckled softly and chose the other, much to Regina’s chagrin. Her eyes rolled and her arms crossed over her chest while Mal smiled triumphantly, and when he made a quip about liking Ingrid Bergman’s girl-next-door quality, Mal shrugged and in a low voice added she hoped it was a naughty girl next door. He’d chuckled again, watching as a little grin edged onto Regina’s lips--and a moment later, they were out the door.

Granny whistled at them, teasingly asking if they were going on a date and when Regina’s cheeks flushed and he felt his own shoulders tense up, Mal offered an easy reply about just wanting to enjoy a spring evening in style. It earned a chuckle and a nod from Granny, and she said no more about it.

The theatre was crowded, but they managed to find three seats together in the back corner of the last row, and Robin ordered a too-large bucket of popcorn, covered in too-much butter. Of course, despite their initial complaints from both Regina and Mal, they had no problem eating their share--and somehow, before even fifteen minutes of the movie had played, the bucket ended up in Regina’s lap. She claimed it was because she was in the center and it just made more sense, and when he rolled his eyes at her, she only hugged the bucket tighter.

But his annoyance had been short-lived because mid-way through the movie, Regina pulled up the arm rest and pulled his arm around her shoulders before cuddling into his side, and when he looked over at her, his grin only brightened at the sight of Mal’s head on Regina’s shoulder and Regina’s fingers twisting a blonde curl absently as they both watched the screen intently.

They waited until the theatre cleared out and took their time, walking slowly through the uncrowded streets. His arm was loose around Regina’s waist and her head was pressed against his arm, and after a quick, look around, he reached for Mal’s hand, lacing his fingers through hers. And when her brows arched in response, he’d looked around quickly again before pressing a quick kiss to her forehead as Regina giggled.

_____

Robin rubs at his temples.

He has a headache, his jaw is tight and he can feel heat rising up the back of his neck as he makes yet another feeble attempt to piece together some sort of defense for Stefan Perrault--or rather, the reasons Mal should go to prison for what she did to him.

And he can’t--and if this were any other case, he’d have walked away weeks ago because aside from his feelings for Mal, but because of the absurd amount of evidence that pointed to her acting in self-defense.

The state didn’t have a case. He didn’t have a case. That should have been the end of it.

His head falls back against his chair, he closes his eyes, thinking of the last few nights with Mal. He thinks about how unsure she’d been that first night that he and Regina invited her to sleep in their bed, and how as soon as the lights were off and they were all in bed, how she’d melted into their touch. The two nights that followed were easier, and the night before she’d initiated a kiss goodnight with both of them. That morning he’d woken up and found Regina lying on her side, stroking her fingers gently though Mal’s hair. The look on her face was a mix of emotions, ranging from regret to love and everything in between, and in that moment, he so deeply felt what she was feeling.

They’d gone about their morning, falling into old and new routines, and when they finished showering and getting dressed for the day, Mal had fresh coffee and a light breakfast waiting for them. She smiled and she laughed, and when they were leaving, she kissed them goodbye, promising Regina that if a letter came from the boys, she’d call her immediately--and as he left, his chest had tightened at the glimpse into the life that they might’ve had.

And then, he’d gone to work to attempt to craft an argument why such a beautiful soul should spend the rest of her life imprisoned, as if the last decade of her life hadn’t been punishment enough.

“Rough morning?”

Robin blinks, stifling the urge to groan as he looks up to see Gold standing just over the threshold. “The morning was fine,” he sighs. “It’s… the present that’s killing me.”

“Long night?”

“I’m sorry?”

“Sometimes, when you have a long night, the start of the morning isn’t so bad, but then when the day gets going, it gets harder to… properly function.”

Robin’s eyes narrow. “I didn’t have a long night.”

“Not fighting with the wife?”

“Excuse me?”

A sharp laugh escapes Gold as he comes further into the office, nearly sashaying toward Robin’s desk. “Well, it’s just that I’d imagine it’d be a point of contention that your wife has brought home a… guest.”

“My wife doesn’t need my permission to have company,” Robin says, bristling. “Or to do anything else.”

“It must be uncomfortable, though.”

“It’s a big house.”

“Still, to have a murderer under your roof, that’s--”

“Difficult,” Robin interjects, gritting his teeth. “But like I said, it’s a big enough house, so it hasn’t been much of an issue.”

“But meal times--”

“We eat apart,” he says, lying easily. “My wife has never been much of a cook.”

“No,” Gold muses. “The smart ones never are.” He laughs again and Robin swallows back the urge to defend Regina. “So, if your wife isn’t the issue, then, I’m confused.”

“About?”

“Why things are progressing so slowly,” he says, with an easy shrug. “Stefan Perrault was murdered. We have the murder weapon. We have a killer with a motive. This should be easy.” His brow arches and his demeanor changes, and suddenly, Robin feels uneasy. “So, what’s the hold-up?”

“Lack of evidence,” Robin says simply.

“Is that so?”

He nods. “What happened was… unfortunate,” he says slowly, “But to be quite frank, Mr. Perrault seemed like a deplorable human who can’t muster anyone other than his brother to vouch for his character. In fact, when the police did their interviewing, most assumed he had murdered her.”

“Assumptions are often wrong.”

“Perhaps, but this is all fairly cut and dry. There’s just not much to defend.”

“Then it’s a good thing you’re not defending,” Gold tells him with a dismissive shrug, but a pointed glare. “You just have to prove she killed him, and she did.”

“And if I can’t?”

“I’m sure some evidence could turn up… somewhere.”

“Turn up.”

Gold laughs and nods as he turns on his heels. “Let me know if you need a bit of… mentoring, in that regard. I’m sure that between the two of us we could scrounge something up.” He makes a clicking sound with his tongue as he exited, and Robin sat back in his chair, his temples suddenly throbbing.

It hadn’t taken long for him to dismiss himself for an early lunch. He ran a couple of errands and dropped off a parcel to be sent to the boys at camp, and on the way out, he checked their PO box, sighing in expected disappointment when he found it empty. He checked his watched and a grin pulled onto his lips--it was nearly noon and Regina would likely be ordering lunch. Picking up his pace, he hurried toward her office, stopping off at a favorite food cart. He ordered them Cuban sandwiches, loading Regina’s with extra pickles, and a few minutes later, he was knocking on the frame of her door.

She smiles brightly at the sight of him as she flops her legal pad down, and gets up to greet him, grabbing onto his hand and leading him to the couch by the window.

“I hope you don’t mind,” he says as he hands her a sandwich. “I told Belle to take an early lunch.”

“Not at all,” she replies. “I’m glad to have you all to myself.”

Chuckling softly, he unwraps his sandwich. “Oh,” he murmurs. “Extra pickles. This one's yours.”

“You remembered.”

He blinks, “Of course I did. You’ve always ordered with extra pickles.”

Biting down on her lip, she looks down at the sandwich and nods and grins.“So, you just… randomly decided to bring me my favorite sandwich and surprise me with a impromptu lunch date.” Regina’s eyes narrow as she looks back to him, his head tipping to the side. None of this is out of the ordinary, or at least it shouldn’t be shocking to her. “The boys wrote, didn’t they? They’re never coming back to us. They’re going to take over a cabin in the woods, and live off the land.”

At that, he laughs out. “No, that’s my not-so-secret dream, not theirs.”

She frowns. “So, they didn’t write yet?”

“I’m sorry, love.”

Sighing, she plucks a pickle from the sandwich. “They’re not going back next year.”

“Regina…”

“I won’t allow it. I miss them too much.”

“You know,” he says, turning himself forward. “Instead of having Mary Margaret Nolan spy on them whenever Neal sends up a distress signal, you could… go with her.”

“But then, they’d… know.”

“Know?” He asks, his brow furrowing slightly. “Know what?”

“That I’m hurt,” she sighs. “And I don’t ever want them to think that I don’t want them to be independent and confident and--” He grins softly as she leans back against the couch and closes her eyes.

Leaning back, he slides his arm around her shoulder. “I miss them, too. And they’ll be home soon.”

“I do like that they’re… well-adjusted and independent.”

“I’ll pretend you didn’t sound disappointed about that.” A little chuckle rises into his voice, “Just like I’m pretending I don’t know that you have John checking in on them and sending you reports.” Her eyes widen a little and he presses a kiss to her cheek. “I know it’s not the same though.”

“It’s not the same,” Regina agrees as her arms fold over her chest. “And why else would I have picked a camp twenty-minutes from John’s place?”

“I figured that’s why you were so insistent on that camp.”

“And he’s cool enough to be--”

“Regina,” he cuts in. “They love you.”

“But I don’t know how to tie knots and shoot arrows and pick out berries poisonous or--”

“Regina.”

She draws in a breath and takes a bite of her sandwich, then looks over at him with a frown. “This is really good.”

“It always is.”

“Not just the sandwich,” she tells him. “Having you here is really good, too.”

He nods. “I’ll admit… I’ve missed this.”

Regina’s brow arches and a hint of a smile tugs onto her lips. “Does that mean you’re ready to admit that leaving was a mistake?”

His jaw tightens.

It was a mistake, a mistake he doesn’t see a way out of.

“I thought I was joining the Good Guys.”

“Robin, you joined the District Attorney’s office, not a team of superheroes.” And then she frowns. “Wait, if Gold is a superhero, what does that make me? An Evil Queen?” It’s a joke, and he should laugh. But his chest feels heavy and his stomach is in knots, and he can’t quite muster a laugh. Regina’s face softens and she stretches an arm around him, rubbing her hand between his shoulder blades. “Hey,” she murmurs, tipping her head to better look at him. “Is there something you wanted to talk about?”

“I can’t.”

“Robin…”

“You’re on the opposite side of this, Regina.”

“Ah,” she says with a sigh. “Well, what if you didn’t talk to me as… anything other than your wife, hm?”

“It doesn’t work like that.”

“It works however we want it to work.” He sighs and his head falls back, and he so desperately wants to confide in her, as he always had. But this if different and it’s not a matter of how the rules they’ve set in place for themselves and it’s not a matter of simply trusting the other. There are legalities involved--but there’s also a life on the line, the life of someone they both love dearly. “Robin,” she murmurs soflty, pressing herself closer, “what's wrong?”

“I just… regret leaving and now I’m stuck.”

Her eyes narrow. “I thought you wanted to stay.”

“I... did,” he says, struggling to find an explanation. “I thought I could protect her and then… the next one wouldn't be this way and… it’d be like I thought it would and…” He stops, shaking his head as he looks at her and more than anything he wants to confide in her and let her help him come up with a solution. “We really made a great team, didn’t we?” He says instead. “I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“We could still make a great team, you know.”

“Maybe…”

“Robin, come on. Just talk to me,” she says, her voice insistent and full of concern. “Let me help.”

“I can’t. You, of all people, know that.”

“I’m not saying this as Mal’s attorney, I’m saying this as your wife,” she says as her hand presses between his shoulders. “You’re clearly bothered by something, so tell me.”

A little smile edges onto his lips. “If I tell you, you won’t just be able hear it as only my wife.”

Her eyes darken a bit and her chin tips. “Is… this about Mal?”

He hesitates for a moment and then nods, deciding he doesn't actually care anymore about the rules that are supposed to govern their interactions. “Gold sort of...insinuated that if there’s a lack of evidence against her that we should… create some.”

“Create some.”

“Yes.”

“That’s--”

“Very illegal,” he says, nodding. “I know.”

“Then you need to--” She stops and her eyes press closed, likely coming to the same realization he’d come to a few hours before. “Shit.”

“Yeah.”

“So, if you were to quit, it wouldn’t just be quitting the case, and--”

“Gold would take over and…” He sighs as his voice trails off. “Who knows.”

“And, I don’t suppose anyone was around to overhear this?”

He shakes his head, “Not a soul.”

“Fantastic.”

“Right.”

“Fuck.”

He sighs, “So, my only option is… to stay and, maybe, try to find proof that’s what he intends to do.”

“Proof,” she repeats, her eyes narrowing. “That’s… quite dangerous.”

He nods. “Or you need some definitive proof of abuse to back-up your self-defense argument.”

Regina’s jaw tightens. “I’m waiting on medical records,” she admits. “There was nothing in her records from New York, but she and Stefan were all over the place. They were in India, at different periods, and then in Paris and London, and… Cambodia and…” She stops. “It’s just so hard to make her talk about it. She clams up and gets so… distant.”

“I know,” he murmurs. “It’s hard to hear her talk about it.”

He watches as Regina’s finger traces along the edge of the toasted crust. “Do you think Leopold paid him or--”

“I don’t know.” He watches as her eyes narrow, and she nods, still absently rubbing her hand against the toast, and he can practically see the wheels in her head turning. “It occurred to me that I’m… in a position to find out.”

“You are,” she says, looking pointedly at him. “Are you willing to… do a little snooping?”

“Are you willing to let me?” He asks, grinning softly. “You typically frown upon my larcenous tendencies.”

“Well, it’s illegal.” Her brow furrows a bit. “And you have a very odd since of ethics.”

Robin shrugs. “It isn’t illegal to… need a pen or a paperclip or, some other miscellaneous office supply, when… say… the secretaries are all out at lunch, and should I stumble upon something…”

“You’ll tell me?”

“I would.”

He watches as her eyes momentarily press closed. “Just don’t get caught.”

“I never do.” At that, her eyes flutter open and she looks skeptical at him. “And if I find out that… he is plotting or… whatever, then…?”

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” she says, ripping off a corner of the toasted bread. “Until then, we stick to the original plan.”

“We had a plan?”

She nods. “The plan was for me to kick your ass in court.”

“Ah, right,” he laughs, ripping off a corner of his own sandwich. “And this time, I’d gladly let you.”

Her grin warms as she settles back, and he can’t help the soft chuckle that rises up from his chest. “Let me,” she scoffs. “You’re hilarious.”

______

She’d sat in her car, parked just around the block from Robin and Regina’s apartment, trying to compose herself, but it seemed that every time she came close, she’d find herself in tears again. It was a hot June day and the thought of ordering a tall glass of lemonade from Granny’s and settling herself in front of a fan in the apartment was a tempting one, but she didn’t want to ruin their evening.

Robin was making them all dinner--gazpacho, at her request--and he’d spent the day making soup and baking tortillas and smacking avocados into guacamole. She’d supplied the ingredients to make margaritas, and it still made her grin at the way Regina pouted when they put her in charge of securing a baguette to dip into the soup, claiming this was something she’d be good at making and citing all sorts of childhood memories of Latin eating cuisine with her father’s side of the family. It’d been adorable the way that she lit up when she talked about it and it wasn’t long before a light summer dinner turned into a sweet little date night. Robin was confident he could string up some paper lanterns and made the food and she’d been put in charge of securing the necessities for margaritas and some music for entertainment, while Regina was put in charge of desert--a task she took very seriously.

The plan had been she would show up early that day. She’d pick up Regina and they’d head to the library in search of the music and a cookbook that would supply them with a list of what they needed to make lemon granita. From there, they’d head to the market and see what they could find, and hopefully, by then, the soup would be cooling. It was supposed to be lighthearted and fun; they were supposed to be the escape that saved her sanity, and she’d be damned if she was going to let Stefan Perrault and his tantrums ruin that.

Wiping away her tears, she took a long, deep breath and looked into the rear-view mirror. Her eyes were red and swollen, and her make-up had run--and for the life of her, she couldn’t remember packing her make-up bag. She fished around in her bag for a couple of minutes, biting down on her bottom lip as she realized it wasn’t there and as she put the car into reverse to back out of the space she’d been camped out in, she wondered if she could pass all of this off as a pollen allergy.

And as soon as she walked into Granny’s, she knew that she couldn’t.

As soon as she stepped into the diner, Granny’s brow had furrowed and her head tipped questioningly to the side. She’d tossed down the cloth she’d been using to wipe the counter and rounded to the front of it, offering a warm hug that made it increasingly difficult to stave off her tears. Of course, Granny was no stranger to her fights with Stefan and her family, and though she never pressed for more information than Mal was willing to give, she was soft and empathetic and always knew how to make it better.

Granny offered up three lemonades and when she tried to pay, Granny refused, insisting that this round was on the house--and as she thanked her, a sweet yet sly little grin pulled onto her lips as she leaned in and confessed the batch had more than a splash of gin in it, and if necessary, the whole pitcher could be hers.

Again, she offered her thanks as Granny plunged a straw into one of the glasses and as she sipped the lemonade, she started up the stairs to Robin and Regina’s apartment, reminding herself that what was done was done, and there was no changing Stefan’s mind about anything, and in the end, his opinion hardly mattered. What did matter was what was waiting for her upstairs...

“Hello?” She calls out as she turns the open door knob, drawing in a deep breath and slowly releasing it in an effort to keep her composure. “Robin? Regina?”

“In the kitchen,” Robin calls back, eliciting a slight but genuine grin. “Come try this! It tastes good, but I don’t know if it tastes the way gazpacho is suppose to taste.”

“Then, isn’t that all that matters? That it tastes good?”

“Maybe,” he calls, laughing softly. “But try it, anyway!”

“Okay,” she says, dropping her overnight bag down by the door. “Granny gave us some lemonade. It’s spiked with--” She stops as she pushes into the kitchen and a soft laugh escapes her, when she finds Robin standing in front of the counter, slicing a jalapeno pepper in nothing other than a pair of blue and green striped boxer shorts. “You’re… not dressed.”

“I’m dressed… enough.”

“You’re in your underwear.”

He shrugs dismissively. “Its like ninety degrees and I’ve been cooking all day. It seemed--” He stops as he looks up at her, his smile fading instantly. “What’s the matter?”

“Nothing,” she lies, shrugging dismissively. “Just… pollen and…”

“Mal.”

“I’m fine.”

“You’ve been crying.”

“No,” she says, shaking her head unconvincingly as she tries to sound aloof. “I had the top down on the car on the way over and…”

Her voice trails off as he sets down the knife, turning to the sink and rinsing his hands, and before she can find her voice again or think up another lie, he’s moving toward her. He takes the cardboard cup holder from her and sets it on the counter, and then his arms fold around, drawing her in and holding her tightly. And he just holds her, cupping the back of her head and not asking for details, only offering comfort. He rubs circles against her back as her head falls to his shoulder, and she feels her chest tightening and her eyes burn in an effort to hold in her tears; and when he tells her that it's okay to cry, that he has her and that he loves her, and that she safe there with him, she can’t help but believe him--and can’t but let it out.

“Come on,” he murmurs. “Let’s go sit down.”

Nodding, she pulls back, watching the way he grins--so full of care--as he swipes away her tears and leads her into the living room. He sits back on the couch and she pulls up her feet as she cuddles into him, and for awhile, they just sit together and he lets her cry until it seems she’s cried all the tears she has to cry--and when she pulls her head up, she smiles a bit awkwardly, wiping her hand over his shoulder.

“You’re all wet now.”

“That’s okay,” he says easily. “No harm’s been done.”

“I really didn’t mean to show up here like this and ruin--”

“You haven’t ruined anything,” he says, in a voice that’s so soft and sincere that she nearly believes him. She draws in a breath and nods, watching as he leans forward, and it’s only then that she realizes he brought out on the lemonades with him. “Drink up. It’ll help.”

Nodding, she takes the glass, cradling it in her hands as she leans back and his arm stretches around her shoulders.

It does help, she thinks, as she grins a bit awkwardly over at him.

Or maybe he does.

Or the combination of the two do…

“I don’t suppose you want to talk about it?”

“Not really,” she admits, cradingly the cold glass between her hands. “It’s just… more of the same. I don’t want to bore you with the details.”

“I wouldn’t be bored,” he says in a soft voice with an easy shrug. “If you want to vent, even if it’s something I’ve heard before--” His voice halts as understanding fills his eyes. “Stefan’s back from school.”

“For two weeks.”

“Just two weeks?”

“He failed marketing or… something like that,” she sighs. “He has to go back and re-take an accelerated version course.”

Robin’s brow furrows. “And… this is a bad thing that he won’t be around all summer?”

“He’s upset. He blames me.”

“Because you’re the one taking an unusually long time to finish a degree at a costly university… and you failed an introduction course in your major?”

A little grin tugs up at the corner of her mouth. “Apparently, those two weeks he spent back here, made him fail his final.” She shrugs. “He claims I kept him so busy he didn’t have any study time.”

“From what I recall, you did everything you could to get out of those events. It was your father and his that insisted the two of you attend them.”

“That’s true,” she admits, nodding as she draws in a breath. “But didn’t you know, everything is my fault.”

His jaw tightens. “Is that what he said?”

She nods, shrugging dismissively. “Apparently, because I made him go to all of those stupid events, I made him fail his course, and now I’ve made it impossible for him to take Rose up to the vineyard, like they’d planned.”

Robin’s eyes widen a bit. “Rose, as in…”

“His girlfriend.”

“Right. I… knew that.”

“We got into a nasty fight and…” She sighs, pulling back a little as she releases a shaky breath. She doesn’t want to tell him the details of it. She doesn't want to think about how he’d come into the dining room as her family had been finishing up brunch or the way he smiled at her father and complimented her mother’s dress as he stared at her with hard eyes; and she doesn’t want to tell him how her stomach had dropped when her parents excused themselves, leaving them alone or how he’d waited until they were certainly out of earshot before unleashing his anger on her.

He felt trapped--because of her. Everything he wanted was out of reach--because of her. The life he wanted to have was one he’d never have--because of her. He couldn’t concentrate--because of her. And now, he was disappointing someone he actually loved--because of her.

And on some level, that was true.

Their fathers were business partners and, in an effort to consolidate the families’ fortunes, they needed to marry. She’d inherit her father’s half and he’d inherit his father’s half, and then their child would inherit it all. It was neat and simple, and an utter disaster.

She nearly flinches at the memory of him throwing a crystal glass at the wall and the sound it made as it shattered, just inches from her, before he’d stormed off, muttering something about taking Rose out to lunch to make it up to her.

“You know what? No.” She shakes her head and sniffs back at her tears, and forces a smile. “He ruined my morning, I’m not going to let him ruin my afternoon, too.”

“To hell with him.”

And before she can laugh, Regina steps into the apartment--and an involuntary smile tugs onto her lips. She’s wearing a lavender button up that’s tied just above her navel with short sleeves are rolled up and tied with white ribbons and a pair of too-short white shorts. Her hair is pinned up in a bun atop of her head and she’s carrying an oversized tote bag--and she looks absolutely adorable.

“To hell with who?” She asks, looking between them.

“Stefan.”

She watches as Regina’s jaw tenses. “What did he do now?”

“It’s not important…”

“It is, if it hurt you,” Regina says dropping down her tote bag. “I hate that whenever he’s around--”

“He’s not worth the energy, Regina,” Mal says, with a decisive nod. “It’s too hot and--” She stops, laughing softly. “And quite frankly, I just don’t want to talk about it. I just… want to forget about him and the fight and… everything else for a little while, okay?”

“Okay,” Regina murmurs. “I won’t bring it up again.” She chews at her lip, and for a moment, they all just sit there together in heavy silence--and then, Regina gets up. She grabs her tote bag and grins. “I think we need to get this party started a little earlier.”

“Oh,” she murmurs, holding up her lemonade. “Granny beat you to that.”

But Regina shakes her head as she and Robin exchange curious glances--and then, she can’t help but smile as she pulls a bottle of rumchata from her bag. “When my grandmother was still around, she used to make these milkshakes for my dad that was I never allowed to have.” She grins a bit nostalgically as she looks at the bottle. “My parents always got into terrible fights and sometimes after the really bad ones, my dad would take me and we’d spend a few days with grandparents. That’s when she’d make the shakes. She said they patched up the soul.”

“Just being her--”

“No,” Regina cuts in, shaking her head as she comes toward her, taking her hand and leading her around the couch. “You’re going to go change out of that dress and into something cooler and take a quick shower, and I’ll make us all some shakes.”

Mal watches as grin pulls onto her lips as Robin’s arm slips around Regina’s waist. “I’ll help,” he says.

Biting down on her lip, she looks between them--and she just can’t resist. “With the shakes or with my shower?”

She laughs as his brows arch and he looks to Regina, who grins and nods, then Regina pushes him toward her. “Just be quick. These shakes won’t take too long and--”

“What if I want both of you?”

Regina blinks and a little laugh escapes her as she sets the rumchata down on the end table. “I guess we could have the shakes afterward to cool us down again.”

“Seems like a perfect plan,” Mal decides as she takes her hand and tugs her toward the bedroom, determined to lose herself in them for a bit and forget all about her unfortunate finance and their fight.

______

“I cannot believe how good this is,” Regina says, blinking up at her as she lifts her feet onto the coffee table. “How did you have time to make this?”

A little laugh bubbles up into her voice as she sinks down beside her on the couch. “Well, it’s not like I have much else to do these days.”

Regina’s smile fades a bit and her eyes darken. “You know you’re not supposed to go--”

“Regina, it’s fine,” she says with a sigh. “I needed some are.”

“I understand that, I just--”

“I wanted to do something nice for the two of you,” Mal says, cutting in as her eyes widen. “You’ve been so good to me and--”

“It’s not--”

“Don’t say it’s nothing,” Mal cuts in, her voice rising over Regina’s. “Because it’s hardly nothing.”

For a moment, Regina doesn’t say anything and the silence between them is heavy--and she’s so tired of everything feeling heavy.

“Besides, I enjoy cooking,” she says, attempting to shift the subject.

Regina laughs, her expression changing “I don’t understand why.”

Mal shrugs as she looks down at the little cup of lemon creme brulee. “It passes the time and…” Her voice catches in her throat, trailing off as her eyes meet Regina’s again. “I’ve missed you two, and this lets me do something special, something to repay--”

“You don’t need to repay us.”

“Regina,” Mal says, her brows arching. “This has been difficult for both of you. It’s put you two in a really complicated situation that--.”

“But that’s not your fault,” Robin says, as he sits comes into the living room with a corkscrew and a bottle of wine. “And before you say anymore,” he says, looking pointedly at her as he drives the corkscrew into the cork. “This is not an opportunity to confess anything to me.”

Regina nods, her eyes widening as she looks to her. “You really do need to stop doing that.”

“But I--”

“Mal!”

She laughs a little and settles back, feeling oddly at ease as she plucks one of the candied lemon wedges from the creme brulee, watching as Robin tops off their glasses. Perhaps it’s all the riesling they had at dinner or just the comfort that comes with being close with them again--or maybe it’s a mix of the two--but for the first time in longer than she can remember, she feels comfortable.

That morning, she’d woken up early--still, later than both of them, though, but early enough to catch them before they left for their respective offices--and make them breakfast. It’d been nothing complicated, but she liked doing something for them--and so after they left, for the first time since coming to stay with them, she ventured out of the house. She headed to a little market on the corner and stocked up on vegetables. The woman behind the counter pointed her in the direction of the butcher and the bakery, and on the way, she’d stumbled upon another little marker that sold mostly Italian-inspired groceries. A cute little old man who sold her some fresh noodles and some spices, and by the end of the morning, she had three bags of groceries.

She’d come back to the house and washed the vegetables, chopping them up before putting the chicken into the oven to roast. She opened up all of the kitchen windows and a nice summer breeze blew through as she worked on a cream sauce for the pasta--and it was almost like it was before, or at least, she could pretend that it was...

They’d surprised her by coming home earlier than anticipated.

They’d come into together just before two. Robin helped with the rest of the dinner while she got started on the desert, and Regina busied herself in the with the wine selection, teasing that she was purposefully staying out of the way as to not mess up dinner. After choosing the wine--a light, crisp apple riesling--she set the table and lit some candles.

At dinner, one bottle of wine had turned into two, and when Robin suggested they move into the living room with their deserts, he handed his off to Regina and went to grab a third bottle of wine. She followed Regina into the living room, finding that her head was a bit dizzier than she’d realized and her stomach much fuller; but, her shoulders were relaxed and for the first time in long than she could remember, she wasn’t filled with a sense of dread or worry about what would come next.

Robin flicked on the record player just before sitting down with them and Regina handed him her desert before swinging her legs up over his lap. Mal watched as he rubbed his free hand over her legs and grinned at her as her fell back back onto her shoulder, with little hesitation, Mal tilted her head to rest gently against Regina’s.

“I love her voice,” Regina murmured absently, as she dragged her spoon through the creme brulee.

“You always have.”

“Mm, do you remember that night her concert was played over the radio?”

“The one with Webb’s Orchestra?”

“Yeah…”

“That was a good one,” Robin agrees. “I have… very fond memories of that night.”

A grin pulls onto Mal’s lips--fond memories, indeed.

It’d been raining and she and Regina had been cuddled up underneath blanket, listening to Ella Fitzgerald perform with Chick Webb’s orchestra. It was cool that night, so they’d built up a fire and opened up some wine, and for awhile, they’d just laid together, listening.

It hadn’t taken long before they were kissing, their hands exploring one another--and by the time Robin came in, about half way through the concert, Regina’s hand and was up her shirt and her lips were on her neck. She’d grinned at Robin as her hand slipped into the front of Regina’s panties and she watched they he stood there, swallowing hard as he watched her hand move beneath the blanket, watching as she fingered Regina.

Eventually, Regina held out a hand to him, inviting him over and it hadn’t taken long for him to find his place--and they’d spent the rest of the concert kissing and teasing, touching and keeping the others warm.

“I didn’t want that evening to end.”

“I don’t want this evening to end,” Robin says as he looks between them as a little grin edges onto his lips.

“You look like you have something in mind,” Regina says, licking the back of her spoon and pouting a little at the empty bowl in her palm.

“I do,” he nods, taking the bowl from her and then handing each of them “I was… thinking about this morning and how nice it’d have been to… sleep in a little and…” He shrugs and settles back against the couch cushions. “It’ just be nice to keep drinking and just see where the night takes us.”

Mal blinks as she looks at him,  taking a sip of the wine, enjoying the way the riesling tastes with the lemon in the dessert, and not really thinking much beyond that.

“Can you manage a late morning?” Regina says, her fingers twisting around the stem of her glass. “I know I can, but--”

“Gold probably didn’t even realized that I never came back from lunch.”

Mal blinks again, and this time, her shoulders tense a little. “You.. probably shouldn’t push it with him.”

“The less he and I see of each other, the better,” Robin says, shrugging dismissively as he takes a sip of the wine. “Besides, it’s the end of the week.”

“Still, I don’t want you getting yourself into trouble.” Both Robin and Regina look to her. Regina’s head rises from her shoulder as Robin’s brow furrows. “You’re already treading on thin ice… because of me.”

“Not because of you,” Robin insists. She sighs. It is because of her and her presence in their lives--why else would the District Attorney have any other trepidation about his newest ADA? “Mal, none of this--”

“But is is my fault. I just catapulted myself into--”

“We want you here,” Regina says, cutting in, and shaking her head. “And once you’re free of--”

“What if Robin loses his job?” Mal hears herself ask as her chest tightens. “What if--”

“I have options.” Blinking, she looks to him and from the corner of her eye, she sees a little grin tugging . “When I joined the District Attorney’s office, I had… a very specific idea of what that was going to be like and it’s been somewhat of a disappointment.”

“Sure, but--”

“I wanted to help get justice for people who’d been hurt. I didn’t want to protect men like Stefan Perrault.”

She nods as she feels tears welling up in her eyes, but for the life of her she can’t quite find the words to say what she wants to say. “And if you lose your license?”

“We’ll cross that road when--”

“Robin.”

“Mal, he’s right,” Regina says, reaching out and rubbing her hand over her arm. “There are some things that are far more important to us than our careers, and you are absolutely one of them.”

“But you have a family to--”

“We’d be fine,” Robin says, his voice calm and light, with no indication of alarm or distress. “And there’s no need in worrying about something that hasn’t happened yet.”

“Sure, but--”

“But nothing,” Regina says, her voice as calm as his.

“It’s just, this was… your dream and I’m coming dangerously close to torpedoing your entire life with my--”

Robin shrugs. “It wasn’t my only dream.” He smiles as his eyes shift to Regina, and then they both look back at her. “And recently, I’ve been reminded of just how happy I can be.”

“We both have.”

She looks between them and draws in a shaky breath. There are a hundred reasons she shouldn’t allow this to go any further and there were a hundred reasons that she shouldn’t have reached out to them for support--and yet, as she sat with them now, with them looking at her the way that they were, it was hard to remember any of those reasons. Her throat tightens and her chest flutters. It’s been so long since anyone considered her feelings or made her a priority, and though she disagrees with their choice to do that, she has to admit, it feels good.

“You’re sweet,” she manages. “Both of you are.”

She watches as they exchange a look and then Regina, looks back at her. She swallows hard as Regina twists around and away from Robin, sitting up and downing what’s left of her wine. Robin sits back, taking a sip of his wine as Regina sets her empty glass onto the coffee table, watching as she twists around and places both of her hands on either side of Mal.  “Do you know what this song always makes me think of?”

Mal swallows hard, her heart beating so loudly, she can barely hear the music. “Um, n-no…”

Regina’s eyes focus down on her lips and then slowly, turn back up to meet hers--and a little smile tugs up at the corner of her mouth. “How good you taste.”

Mal feels her cheeks flush and a memory flickers--a memory of that night when they’d listened to Ella Fitzgerald’s concert. She’d leaned back against against Robin, smiling up at him as he bent to kiss her as Regina shifted herself between her legs.

“Come to bed with us,” she says, her breath warm and her voice low. “I wanna taste you again.”

Swallowing hard, she feels herself nod.

Regina’s eyes flash with triumph, the way they do whenever she gets something that she really wants, and she feels herself smile, licking her lips as Regina leans in closer, hovering teasingly close and just waiting--waiting and leaving it up to her.

Robin shifts himself over, one hand rubbing at her arm and the other over Regina’s back, and he looks to her, with that same sweet expectation.

It’s been so long since anyone’s looked at her the way that they are and so long since the decision was her to make, and she’s lost track of the times that she allowed herself to get caught up in even just the fantasy of a moment like this one--and so drawing in a quick breath, she lets herself indulge… just this once.

“Let’s go upstairs,” Robin says, his voice low and husky. “We’ll all be more comfortable.”

Regina pulls back, nodding as she reaches for her hand, pulling her up with her, and before she can even find her footing, Regina’s lips are crashing down onto hers. Her breath catches and her heart flutters as Robin’s hand swipes up her back and his lips settle momentarily at the crook of her neck.

It takes a while, but they make their way to the bedroom, losing articles of clothing as they go.

Robin’s hand presses into the small of her back as he draws her in, kissing her fully on the lips as Regina circles around her, sliding her fingers into the thin waistband of her panties and slipping them down her legs. She steps out of them, not breaking the kiss as her legs hit the back of the bed--and from there, she lets Robin guide her down onto her back.

She can feel his cock pressing into her thigh as he hovers over her, still kissing her as his fingers push into her hair. A little tingle runs down her spine as she feels Regina sit down on the bed, her fingers ghosting up and down her leg as she watches them kiss.

He breaks the kiss and she she sucks in a breath as he rolls off of her, settling at her side, and then as she looks from him to Regina, she can’t help the smile the edges over her lips. Regina’s kneeling at her side on the bed, her hands rubbing slowly over her knees as her tongue swipes over her bottom lip. She looks so sexy in her lacy black bra and her dark eyes are hooded and filled with such a tantalizing mix of lust and love.

Swallowing hard, she pulls herself up onto her elbows as her legs fall open and she watches as a sly little grin edges onto Regina’s lips. At her side, Robin repositions himself, tugging off his boxers and stretching an arm around her shoulders, whispering her for her lean back and enjoy.

So, she does.

She’s already so wet and Regina’s breath is warm--and when her tongue circles around her clit, she practically comes, right then and there.

And Regina knows it.

She looks up at her, grinning before she leans back in, licking the length of her as her fingers knead at her hips. Regina takes her time, her tongue lapping and swirling in a way that’s so wonderfully familiar.

Robin’s finger’s rub gently at her shoulder as he leans in for another kiss, and slowly, she finds herself reaching for his cock. Her fingers wrap around the hard shaft, slowly moving up and down as they kiss, and when Regina’s finger slips inside of her, her breath catches and she moans softly into his kiss--and she feel him smile against her lips.

And for just a little while, everything feels so right.

______

Mal laughs out as Robin pulls her to him, folding his arm around her as Regina rolls onto her side, tickling her neck and shoulder with fluttering kisses--and it’s so tempting to let this go on.

Robin’s hand presses to the small of her back and Regina’s tongue flicks at her earlobe, and again she laughs. “You’re not allowed to leave,” Robin tells her, his voice soft and low. “You’re stuck here with us.”

“I just said I wanted some coffee,” she says. “I was going to come right back.” Regina’s lips slip back to her neck and she draws in a breath as her head falls back, allowing her more access to her. “But…ohh…”

Regina pulls back and Mal turns her head to look at her, pouting at the loss of contact. “Coffee does sound nice.”

Mal grins as she looks to Robin. “It looks like it’s two against one.” She laughs when Robin pouts--and then, he nonetheless sighs and lets her go. “I promise,” she says, looking between them. “I’ll be right back.”

Getting out of bed is a bit awkward, given that she’s in the middle between them both and Robin doesn’t do much to move out of the way--but she manages, pulling the loose sheet along with her and wrapping it around herself. She grins back at them as Robin’s brow arches and Regina cuddles into his side.

“What?”

“You… realize we’ve seen it all before,” he says. “There’s no need to cover up.”

“You two have, but I’m not sure I want to give your neighbors a free show,” she says, tipping up her chin and clasping the sheet just above her chest. “I’m just not that kind of girl.”

Regina rolls onto her side and grins up at her. “You could take my robe, you know.”

She laughs again, she says, shrugging her shoulders as she tucks the sheet so that her hands can be free. “This is more fun.”

Regina’s eyes roll, but Robin laughs and she takes one last look at them from over her shoulder before padding out into the living room of their apartment. She grins as she looks around, noting the wine glasses and dessert plates they’d abandoned the night before, all of them deciding they were simply too tired to clean up.

They’d fallen asleep easily--all of them, tangled together on the bed that wasn’t meant to accommodate three adults yet barely fit into the tiny bedroom of the apartment. She loved staying over, though, despite being a little cramped, and she always slept so much better here than she did anywhere else.

She twists the knob and watches the burner on the stove ignite and then, she reaches for the Moka Pot, a forgotten relic of a long ago family vacation to Italy that she’d found and brought to them when their old coffee maker finally burned out. Quickly, she filled the pot’s bottom and added the coffee grounds to the filter--and then, she sets it on the stove as she opens the cabinet, pulling out three mugs. She taps her feet impatiently as she finds a tray and lines up the mugs, every now and then glancing back to the bedroom with a little grin as she fills a little cup with cream and sprinkles a little sugar into the bottom of two of the mugs, and then some cinnamon into the one she claims for herself.

Finally, after what seems like an absolute eternity, the water begins to boil. She turns off the stove and sets the pot on the tray, carefully lifting it as she makes her way back to the living room--and then her bag catches her eye. She grins a little coyly as she sets down the tray and opens her bag, fishing around in it until she finds her camera--and then, clipping on the strap, she pulls it over her shoulder and lifts the tray and pads back to the room.

A smile draws onto her lips as she enters the room, and she wishes she wasn’t carrying the tray and she had her camera ready.

Robin and Regina are laying together. His arm his around her and her head is on his shoulder, and they’re just staring up at the ceiling listening to the rain. Robin’s playing with her hair and they look so sweet together, so content and relaxed, and it’s the sort of moment she’d love to capture--the sort of moment she could look back on in the years to come, the sort of moment that’d never lose its warmth or ability to make her smile.

The tray rattles and they both look over at her, watching as she comes in and sets the tray on the dresser. She grins at them through the mirror and pours their coffee--careful to ensure that Regina’s is black and Robin’s has just a dash milk and sugar--and she slips the camera onto the dresser, then turns to them, grinning as she shrugs off the sheet.

She can’t help but giggle as their expressions change, suddenly a little more alert and interested, and she hands them their coffee before turning back to the dresser to mix her own--and every few seconds, she can’t help but grin at the way they look at her as they sip their coffee.

Again, it’s a moment she’d love to capture.

Her coffee in one hand and her camera in the other, she turns back to the bed--and Regina’s brows arch.

“What… is that for?”

She shrugs as she sits at the foot of the bed. “I thought it’d be nice to snap a few pictures of us.”

“Of… the three of us?” Regina asks, her eyes going wide. “In bed together.” Mal nods and looks between them. “Pictures that someone would have to develop.”

“Pictures that I would have to develop,” Mal says, gently correcting her as she squeezes her foot. “Don’t worry. They’d be for private use only, of course.”

At that, a grin twists onto Regina’s lips and Robin clears his throat. “For private use, hm?”

Mal’s eyes roll and her shoulders square. “Get your mind out of the gutter,” she says, scolding him playfully. “I just think that it’s quite pathetic that I’ve never taken any pictures of us, especially given that I take pictures of everything.”

“It’s hard to do that,” Robin teases, “Considering the three of us our sitting naked together in bed… and considering what the three of us were doing only an hour ago.”

Mal’s eyes roll, but Regina frowns. “That’s not true,” she says, looking between them. “You brought your camera when we all went ice-skating that one time and when we--”

Mal shakes her head. “And I took pictures of the trees and the rink. The two of you aren’t in a single one, much less the three of us.”

“Oh…”

She bites down on her lip, watching as they sip their coffee--and she finds herself reaching for her camera, and quickly working off the lens cap. Before they even realize what she’s doing, she’s already snapped their first picture--one of them looking so pensive and natural together. When the camera flashes and Robin blinks and his lips part in surprise, a giggle escapes her and she snaps another picture.

It’s not long before she’s set her coffee down on the floor before she’s up on her knees and instructing Robin to put his arm around Regina. He laughs but obliges and without needing to be prompted, Regina rests her head on his shoulder and looks up at Mal, offering the softest little smile for the camera.

Robin bends his head, pressing a kiss to Regina’s hair--and again, she snaps a picture.

She takes a few more--one of Regina laughing and another of Robin pulling her closer--and then, just as she’s about to take another, they both sit up and pulls her down between them. They’re all laughing as she rolls onto her back and she feels Robin pull away the camera as Regina’s hand slides up over her cheek, drawing her into a kiss. She hears the camera lens opening and shutting, and she’s vaguely aware of the camera’s flash as Robin takes pictures of them--and then, just as she’s starting to lose herself in it Robin leans in and presses his lips to her shoulder as he takes another picture.

She lets out a breathy sigh as Regina lips trail away from hers and she blinks a couple of times, watching as Robin hands the camera to Regina, giving her a turn. She can’t help but grin as she turns her head toward him and he pecks at her lips before rolling onto his back and pulling her on top of him. She laughs out and Regina snaps a picture--and then she takes another as Robin sits up and wraps his arms around her back. Her hands rest on his shoulders, and for a moment, all she can do is stare at him with him dimpled smile and messy hair.

“Come here,”  she says, waving Regina over as she takes the camera back and takes hold of her hand. “I want a few of all three of us.”

Robin lays back and Mal rolls to his side as Regina cuddles into the other. His arms are around them and Mal lifts the camera high above them, taking a picture of them just like that--and then, she giggles and tells Regina to kiss Robin’s cheek as she does the same. She takes a picture like that and a few others like it--some looking serious and thoughtful, others with intentionally silly faces and then some completely candid moments.

Mal lowers the camera and looks down at the dial. “Only one left,” she says, frowning as she looks between them. “We should save it.”

“That was fun,” Robin says, reaching for his coffee on the nightstand. “We should--”

“Well, you obviously enjoyed yourself,” Regina cuts in, chuckling softly as her brow arches as she looks down at his lap. “Quite a bit, by the looks of it.”

Mal follows her gaze and grins at Robin’s budding erection. “Oh, come on,” he says, his eyes widen as he looks incredulously to Regina. “You two were all over me, and all over each other. You really expect me not to… react to that?”

Mal rubs her hand over his arm. She licks her lips as her eyes slide to Regina, and she grins as Regina’s eyes shift down to Robin’s cock--and she watches as Mal lowers herself, taking him into her mouth. She grins as she pulls back and momentarily, her eyes meet Regina’s as her tongue swirls around the tip of Robin’s cock and he lets out a low and breathy sigh that’s full of contentment. She sinks back down slowly, her tongue flatting against his shaft--and again, her eyes turn up, watching as Robin’s arm folds around Regina’s shoulders and her tongue parts his lips, and he moans into her kiss.

She watches them for awhile, feeling her own arousal building--and then, before she even realizes it, Regina lifts the camera and snaps the last picture of them. Robin’s eyes widen as he breaks their kiss and Mal pulls herself off of him, her jaw dropping as she looks at Regina.

“What?” She asks with an innocent shrug. “I thought it might be fun to have a sexy one.”

“Did you?”

“Mmhmm,” she says, blinking as she looks between them and a sly little grin edges onto her lips. “These pictures are for private use, aren’t they?”

Mal can’t stop herself from laughing out as Robin’s arm tightens around her shoulders and he pushes her back against the pillows. And when Regina laughs into his kiss, Mal again finds herself smiling a bit wistfully. She knows she can’t keep them and this little world they’re living in isn’t meant to last--and she finds herself wishing that this were another moment she could capture because it’s one she’d like to remember, always.

And then, before she can get too far ahead of herself and worry about things she doesn’t yet have to, Robin reaches out and pulls her to them---and she happily loses herself in the moment with them.

______

He sits at his desk, his thoughts swimming with Regina and Mal, and the past few nights with them.

It’d given him a glimpse of the life he thought was behind them.

When Mal left, it left them in a tailspin, and for months, all he could think about were the things they never said, the topics they always pushed aside. They didn’t have a solid plan for the future. It’d all been stolen moments and living in the present, but they’d all thought about what the future might look like for them--even if it it went unsaid.

Smiling, he looks to the double frame on his desk, one side holds a photograph of Roland and Henry from the summer before, standing on a stump in the middle of the woods up at John’s cabin, and in the frame beside it, a picture of Regina and the boys, sitting by a campfire ready to roast s’mores. They’d spent two weeks there, and he loved it--and so did the boys.

It reminded him on the summer during his undergrad that he’d worked in a state park, and he was glad to share that experience with his sons. They woke up early and went on hikes through the woods, he taught them thing about the animals that lived there and the types of plants that grew there, and they spend their afternoon keeping cool in by lake. They fished and swam, and once the sun went down, they all cuddled up by the fire and told stories.

And, of course, they just didn’t talk about the fact that they were only mile away from a cottage that Mal’s family owned or the happy memories they’d created there years before…

On some level, he now wondered if it’d been that experience summer that pushed him into the change of jobs had been subconsciously influenced by that summer trip and the reminder that once upon a time he’d envisioned himself practicing environmental law. But after graduation, things changed. The jobs that he wanted were scares and the ones available were clear across the country--and year later, he had a child to think about and his priorities shifted. Then, in an odd stroke of fate, Regina’s mother passed away and her trust fund was suddenly available to her; and gladly, he’d agreed to open up a firm.

It was stable, it was lucrative and it allowed him to work closely with Regina, and he’d loved the year they’d spent working together. Their schedule was flexible and it allowed them to be parents, and he was grateful to not have missed out on sons’ childhoods, that he got to play an active part. People always asked them how they managed to raise a family with Regina choosing to work, and he never quite knew how to respond to that, other than to say they’d been lucky--because they had been.

Henry and Roland were growing up to be kind-hearted and thoughtful boys. They were curious and observant, and full of energy and empathy--and everything he did was meant to be an example to them.

Sighing, his head fell back against his chair as he looked away from the picture--and he found a now-familiar dull ache returning to his temples.

And, of course, that’s when Gold knocked on the frame of his door.

“You’re looking awfully pensive.”

“I’ve got a bit of a headache, truthfully,” Robin admits, lifting his head to look at him. “I was hoping to shut my eyes for a--”

“You know,” Gold cuts in, not allowing him to finish. “I’ve been thinking about our conversation earlier this week.” Robin nods as he feels his jaw tighten. “Have there been any.. new developments?”

“No,” he replied flatly. “Still not enough to argue that what happened between the Perraults was anything other than--”

“Robin,” Gold interjects as a low laugh rises into his voice. “From everything I’ve heard about Millicent Perrault, she’s flighty and aloof. Cold and unaffectionate, and not really the sort of person whose grounded in reality, you know?” It takes everything in him to bite his tongue. That isn’t Mal at all. “Surely, there’s something there you can work with.”

“None of those things could make her guilty.”

Gold’s eyes narrow. “Is that what your wife would say?”

“I don’t know,” he lies. “My wife and I are barely speaking these days.”

“A pity.”

He huffs in response. This isn’t a conversation he wants to have.

“So, tell me,” Gold says, leaning in and resting his elbows on the edge of the desk. “What is a day like in the Locksley household these days?”

“Well, for starters, it’s the Mills-Locksley household and…” His voice trails off and he takes a breath, gritting his teeth as he plays along. “It’s tense.”

“Your wife really doesn't understand how the world works.”

“Excuse me?”

“Well, it’s cute that she’s been allowed to--”

“No one allows Regina to do anything. She makes her own choices.”

“Mm, it’s just a pity that she doesn’t seem to understand the rules,” Gold says with a dismissive shrug. “And if you don’t play by the rules, then that just can’t end well for her.”

Once more, his jaw tightens.  “Is… that a threat?”

“No” Gold laughs. “You’re mistaken if you took it that way. I just mean… I afraid your wife’s in a bit over her head, and with you not there to help--”

“She’s fine without me. She’s perfectly competent and a damn good--”

“Again, you misunderstand me. This isn’t a dig at your wife. I’m just merely stating the facts. She seems to be working with an idealized version of reality. Guilt and innocence don’t matter here.”

“But it does matter. It’s the whole point of--”

Gold shakes his head. “It’s far more complicated than that.”

“It shouldn’t be.”

“But it is,” Gold says easily, clearly unbothered. “Families like the Perraults have a lot of power and--”

“Doesn’t Millicent’s family have--”

Gold laughs before he can finish. “It’s one in the same. She’s nothing without him.” His eyes narrow and he feels a burst of emotion. Mal has never been nothing and though he can’t defend her, he wants to. “Look, I’m not saying it’s fair. I’m just saying this is how it works. The Perraults have been good to this office, to this city and, it’s be a shame for us to let them down when they need us.”

Robin blinks, remember the conversation he and Regina had in her office--and he nods.

Gold wishes him a good day as he rises, reminding him that the clock is ticking and if he needs help with the case, just to ask. It was an odd offer and it seemed, that despite the was he presented himself, he was beginning to panic. It was clear that Leopold Perrault, or someone in the family, was pushing for a conviction, and Gold’s comments about guilt not actually mattering made him think that the Perrault’s knew Mal acted in self-defense. They just didn't care. Protecting their name and their power was more important than an in-law they never wanted and had always been a complication for them.

And though he can’t quite yet wrapped his head around it, he couldn’t help but think that boded well for Regina, and for Mal.

______

Sometimes, Mal is like a bolt of energy--and sometimes, she’s a shock to the system.

For the most part, the time she and Robin spend with Mal has been very planned out with few surprises. That wasn't to say that she wasn’t around a lot, and rarely did a week pass where they didn’t see her at least once; but still, that time was planned around class schedules and the odd jobs she and Robin would do here-and-there for extra cash. They always had to consider Mal’s family obligations and the fiance whose existence they preferred to ignore, and though no one seemed to notice or care whenever she disappeared on a random Tuesday or even for a few days at a time, she was careful not to create a pattern and always provided plausible excuses to account for her whereabouts.

They were careful.

They had to be.

And as much as they hated that, they were used to it.

They’d been caught up in a conversation about the lecture they’d just left and a possible internship opportunity that’d be presented that evening--and of course, it’d been offered to Robin and not her, despite her higher grade point average.

Robin’s initial response was excitement--and then she’d bristled and he felt guilty.

It wasn’t that she wasn't proud of him and it wasn’t that didn't want to him to take the internship; in fact, her annoyance hadn’t had anything to do with him at all. She worked hard to stay at the top of her class and no matter how hard she worked, she was perpetually in a position where she had to prove herself while the others in her cohort, by this point, had earned respect and opportunities that would further their careers and give them experience her hard work could never replace.

Robin offered to turn it down, but that didn’t seem fair--and ultimately, in the end, what benefitted him would benefit her.

Or, at least, that’s what she kept reminding herself of.

“I just… need to take a shower,” she sighs as Robin fumbles with the key. “I’ll be fine after that.”

“No, you won’t,” he says, looking back at her. “And you shouldn’t.”

“Robin, there’s nothing that--”

Her voice halts as the door opens and the first thing she notices is the light--a light she absolutely turned off before class--and then, before she can process that, Mal comes bursting out of the kitchen announcing that she’s glad they’re finally home. She rushes toward them, kissing the each as she takes their books and backs, dropping them off next to her overnight bag that sits on a bench by the door, and then, she grabs their hands, practically dragging them to the couch.

Despite her annoyance, Regina can’t help but laugh as Mal sits down across from them. “I just couldn’t wait,” she says, reaching behind herself on the coffee table and pulling a folder onto her lap--and then her smile fades as she looks between them. “But maybe I should have.”

“No,” Regina’s quick to say, reaching out and touching her fingers to the hem of Mal’s skirt, sitting at her knee. “I’m glad you’re here. I’m just... grumpy.”

“I got an internship offer,” Robin tells her.

“Oh, that’s--” Momentarily, she brightens and then, she fades. “Oh.”

“I’ll get over it,” Regina says, shrugging. “I just--”

“It’s shitty,” Mal says. “You keep getting passed over for--”

“I just need to sulk for a bit. I’ll be fine.” Robin sighs and his lips part as she looks sharply toward him. “But you are not allowed to turned this down. It’s not… chivalrous or… whatever. It’d be stupid and you deserve--”

“And you don’t?”

“Robin…” She sighs, looking between them as she shakes her head. “You turning down an internship doesn’t mean it’d go to me. It’d just go to the next… male.”

“You don’t--”

“I don’t want it like that.” She shakes her head. “I don’t want to be offered something because someone else didn’t want it.” She shrugs. “Maybe this… just wasn’t a good fit for me, you know?”

“It’s still shitty,” Mal says, rubbing her hand over Regina’s. “Can I… do anything?” She grins. “I could go and get some stupidly expensive liquor and have your drunk out of your mind...or…”

“You being here is more than enough,” Regina says as a little smile tugs onto her lips. “Really.”

“Can you stay?” Robin asks. “It’s already late and--”

“My parents took an impromptu trip to Newport. Stefan is… at school, I assume, and my soon-to-be in-laws don’t acknowledge my presence when he’s not around.” She shrugs as a little grin edges onto her lips. “So, I can stay… for a while.”

“A while, I like that.”

“Me, too,” Regina says, her heart fluttering a bit. “And I won’t spend that time sulking.”

“You have every right--”

“No,” she decides, looking to Robin. “I don’t. You’re just as qualified as I am, and,” she draws in a breath as she looks to Mal. “You’re not here enough for me to waste time feeling sorry for myself.”

A little chuckle rises up into Mal’s voice. “I practically live here.”

“Practically isn’t enough,” Regina says as Robin reaching for her hand, tugging her up form the coffee table and down between them on the couch, and Regina catches his grin as she cuddles into Mal. “This helps, by the way.”

“I’m glad.”

Robin settes back and grins over at them. “You were awfully excited when we came in.”

“I’m always excited to spend time with you two,” she says, looking over at him. “But, I developed the pictures we took last week and and they came out beautifully.”

Regina brightens. “Yeah?”

“Wanna see?”

“Of course,” she replies, nodding as Mal leans forward to grab the envelope. “Is the, um… the one I took of me…um…”

“Are you trying to ask about the picture you took of yourself blowing Robin?” Mal fills in, her brow arching. “Because, if so, that one came out, and… it’s one of my favorites.”

“Oh, god…”

Robin clears his throat and grins. “I’m going to need a copy of that one.”

Mal laughs, leaning in and pressing a kiss to his cheek. “I already made the duplicates. This whole envelope is yours. It’s just my favorites, though. A few of them were blurry or… had weird angles…” Shrugging, she looks back to Regina. “So, like I said, I just gave you guys the good ones.”

“The envelope is awfully thick.”

She giggles softly as her finger slips under the flap. “I have a lot of favorites.”

Mal takes a breath as she draws out the stack of pictures, then holds up the first photograph. Regina smiles as she looks at the picture--it’d be impossible not to--and she can’t help but think how perfectly Mal managed to capture the moment, and really, to capture them. To anyone who didn’t know any better, it was a photograph of three friends, posing for silly shots--but when you looked closely, you could see the pillows they leaned back against and though the covers were drawn up around them, their shoulders were bare. They were all smiling brightly, albeit a bit groggily as the sun shined in on the bed--and they looked so happy and at ease.

“And they were.

“But this one is, hands down, my favorite.”

_____

Regina smiles as she looks up from her notepad, watching the way Robin leans against the frame of her door. He looks tired--weary, even--but he’s smiling, nonetheless, as he holds her coffee mug with steam rising up from its top.

“You always did know the way to my heart,” she says as he steps in, rounding her desk as she takes the mug and he presses a quick kiss to her cheek. “I was kind of surprised to get your call.”

“There’s something surprising about me wanting to see my wife?” He asks, cocking his head as sits back against the edge of her desk.

Her brow arches. “Well, no, but in the middle of the day… we’re starting to make a habit of this…” she shrugs. “Not that I’m complaining.”

For a moment, he doesn’t respond. His eyes narrow as a little grin she can’t quite place edges onto his lips. “I was having trouble concentrating and my thoughts started to drift, and eventually, they ended up back at you.”

“What were you thinking about?”

“What we talked about yesterday,” he admits. “I… haven’t been able to stop thinking about it.”

“About Gold and Leopold?” SHe asks, her shoulders tensing up a bit. She’s been thinking about it too, and the more she thinks about it, the more unsettling it becomes.

“I’m pretty certain we’re right.”

Her eyes widen and heart starts to beat a little faster. “You found something.”

“No,” he’s quickly to say. “Gold’s been in the office all day, so I can’t get in there, but he dropped in for a follow up.”  Taking a breath, his eyes momentarily sink closed. “He basically told me that he didn’t care if Mal was innocent or if it was a case of self-defense, the Perraults had been good to him--”

“They basically paid for his first campaign,” she says. “He owes them.”

“You’ve been doing your research.”

She shrugs. “I still haven’t gotten Mal’s medical records from overseas, so I’m at a standstill. And I can’t just wait and do nothing.” A soft little grin flickers in his eyes. “I don’t want to put her through a trial. She can barely talk about this with me, but I’m trying to mentally prepare for her medical records being a bust.”

“So you’re looking for another angle.”

She nods as her throat tightens a bit. “I-I can’t let her down… and this just going away would be the easiest on… on all of us.”

“That’s what I’d want, too,” Robin says, sighing a bit as his eyes momentarily press closed. “I can’t quite wrap my head around how I’m supposed to argue this.” He shrugs and draws in a breath as he looks back at her. “I sort of assumed that I’d be able to stamp this one shut.”

“Well, you’re supposed to fabricate evidence,” Regina answers with an irritated scoff as she looks up at him. “And take a bribe or two to make yourself feel better about it.” Her brow arches as she looks pointedly at him, her stomach fluttering with emotions she can’t quite place, but feel too unsettling for comfort. “That’s what Gold insinuated yesterday.”

Robin nods. “Right.”

Biting down on her lip, she narrows her eyes at him.

This had certainly gotten messy--messy in ways she hadn’t at all anticipated.

From the start, she’d been worried about Robin’s involvement, but it wasn’t because she thought the District Attorney’s office had a better case, or even had a real shot at putting Mal in prison; and from the start, she’d been confident that she could get Mal out of this and though she didn’t vocalize it, she didn’t actually think this any of this would even go to trial. After all, the more she unearthed about Mal and Stefan’s marriage, the more obvious it became that Mal acted in self-defense, and the more obvious it became that the state didn’t have a case against her.

Robin’s involvement had simply been a complication, though.

She didn't want him to act on impulse or on emotion and get himself into trouble, and she didn't want the Perraults to be able to point at any reason to think Mal had gotten off easy or because the lawyer prosecuting her case had done something unethical. And she knew that if it did go to trial, no matter what he said, there was no way he’d be able to stand up in front of a judge and jury and argue that Mal should spend the rest of her life in prison. He loved her far too much to ever be able to do that, and she worried it’d all culminate in him throwing the case and getting himself disbarred.

There was no doubt, that he shouldn’t be the one handling this case. It was too close to him, too much a conflict of interest, and she’d been annoyed that he wouldn’t hand it over to someone else--and now, she was wondering if his gut-instinct was correct, if staying really had been the right choice.

She was even wondering now, if it’d been a blessing.

“I… think we need to start digging into the Perrault’s campaign donations,” she says. “I can have his financial records subpoenaed. Maybe I can find a money trail.”

“You shouldn’t be telling me that.”

“And you shouldn’t be telling me about private conversations that take place in the DA’s office, yet here we are.”

“Touche,” he murmurs as a little grin edges onto his lips. “Well, since we’re sharing things, Gold should be in court all day tomorrow and I’m pretty sure i can woo the secretaries into taking a long lunch.”

“Yeah, I’m really sure you’ll have to woo them into that.”

“I don’t know that anything’s in his office but--”

“It’s worth a look,” she says, nodding in agreement. “At least it might give us a place to start.”

“Not that you can use any of it court.”

“Like I said,” she says as a little grin edges onto her lips as she reaches out and touches her fingers to his knee, drawing his eyes to hers. “It might give me a place to start. Just… be careful.”

“Always,” he assures her. “Trust me, I have a plan.”

“One that goes beyond sending all the secretaries out for a nice lunch and mistaking Gold’s office for a supply closet.”

“Of course.”

“You know,” she says, leaning back in her chair and looking up at him as she finally takes a sip of her coffee. “This is almost like we’re working together again.”

“Almost.”

“But not quite.”

“No,” she murmurs. “Not quite.” And then, her smile fades. “Do you regret it?”

“Leaving?”

“No,” she says, shaking her head. “Working together.”

“No.”

“That was quick.”

“Well, I don’t need to think about it. I don’t regret it.” And then he pauses and again, her heart beats a little faster. “You know, before Gold came in to give me a not-so-veiled lecture me on the importance of Perraults’ power, I was actually thinking about it.”

“Yeah? You want to come? There just so happens to be an empty office next to mine.”

“Right now, you’ve no idea how tempting that sounds.”

“But--”

“I’m not cut out to be a prosecutor. I don’t like this.”

“Well, this case isn’t exactly--”

“It’s not the case. It’s not Mal,” he says, sighing as he shrugs. “Do you remember in law school--”

“You’re thinking about environmental law again?”

“I don’t know,” he admits. “Maybe.”

“Well, I like that better than this.”

He grins and nods. “Well, we’ll talk about it more once all of this is settled.”

“Robin, if we can prove that the Perraults are trying to pay off the DA’s office and I can prove that Mal really did act in self-defense then…”

“Then this is over.”

“And we can move on.”

A little grin tugs onto his lips. “We should probably talk about what that means.”

“You mean if it involves Mal.”

“It has to.”

“I know,” she nods. “But that choice will be hers.”

“I guess that’s just another bridge we’ll have to cross when the time comes.”

“Until then, we’ll just have to… enjoy what we can.”

He nods, “For as long as we can have it.”

Regina smiles softly as her chest tightened. It’s hard to think about going forward without Mal; and though he hasn’t been back in their lives for more than a few weeks, in so many ways, it was like it always was. Mal was different, but so were they and they all still seemed to click just right--and for the first time in a very long time, she was able to think about what it might be like to have the life she used to envision for them.

But Mal wasn’t there yet; she wasn’t ready for that conversation--and she desperately hoped, that when all was said and done, she’d stick around long enough to have it and she’d make an honest effort of building a life with them. Right now, she only saw barriers, and all she considered was what everyone else would think and feel--and she had to assume that was the result of years spent never being allowed to consider what she wanted, years spent justifying her own horrible circumstances with the hope that her sacrifices would mean someone else’s happiness.

“Regina?” Belle asks, opening the door a crack and bringing both her and Robin back into the present moment. “Mal is here.”

“She is?”

Robin blinks. “She has to stop going out on her own.”

“I know, and I told her that after her little excursion, but--”

“I wasn’t sure if I could let her in.”

“Of course you can,” Regina says as Robin pushes himself off of the edge of her desk. “It’s always okay to send her in.”

Belle nods and a little grin edges onto her lips. “I think she brought you lunch.”

Regina watches as Belle disappears from the doorway and then, a moment later, Mal comes in, smiling brightly--and looking so much like the Mal she fell in love with.

“Oh, you’re both here,” she says, shutting the door behind herself as she walks us to the coffee table to the right of her desk. “I was bored and--”

“You know you shouldn’t go out alone,” Regina says, looking to Robin. “The whole point of you staying with us was to keep safe.”

“Well, initially it was.”

“I know,” she says, smiling a bit guilily. “But it’s hard staying all alone. I get lonely.” She shrugs as she looks between them. “And, I feel like I’m interrupting.”

“No.”

“Never.”

“I am, though, aren’t I? You two were in the middle of something. I’m interrupting.”

“You’re not an interruption.”

Her brow arches unconvinced as she and Robin exchange a quick glance. “We were just… talking about some things.”

“Things that pertaining to me and my… predicament?” Regina nods as Mal fidgets with her fingers. “Is there something I should know? I mean, the two of you talking together about my case…”

She watches as the panic rises up from her hands to shoulders and into her face, and suddenly, all she sees is the terrified woman who’d stood in her office weeks before, pleading for her to help her. With a soft sigh, she smiles, crossing the room and slipping her arm around Mal as she hugs her into her side, and she just can’t bring herself to tell her there’s a possibility that the Perraults attempted  to purchase a life-sentence for her.

“I was telling Robin that I… don’t think the state has a case against you.”

“And the state,” he says, pointing to himself and eliciting a hint of a grin from Mal. “Agrees.”

“But Gold is going to be harder to convince.”

“Ah…”

“I subpoenaed your medical records from the time you and Stefan spent abroad and--” Mal’s eyes widen she feels her tense. “Hey. It’s okay. It’s just--”

“You didn't tell me that you were looking into my medical records,” she’s quick to say. “There’s nothing in them, anyway. Nothing that would prove abuse. He was more careful than that.” Regina sighs as her eyes slide to Robin and she feels Mal draw in a breath. “But I do have something that can prove it.”

Regina’s eyes widen as she looks back to her. “What?”

“Pictures,” Mal says as she pulls away and sits down on the couch behind herself. “I… I took pictures of myself.”

“Oh, Mal…”

“Why didn’t you say--”Regina stops as she turns to her, watching the way her shoulders curl forward and she presses her eyes closed, and she feels her chest tighten. “It doesn’t matter why you didn’t say something about them.”

“I just… hoped you wouldn’t need them,” she admits, looking up and looking between them. “They’re hard to… to look at and… I…”

“Mal,” Regina says, drawing in a shaky breath as she sinks down beside her and stretches an arm around her, rubbing her hand over her back. “It’s okay. It’s over now. That’s all behind you.”

Mal nods, but she looks unconvinced.

Robin crosses the room toward them and she watches as he sinks down on the opposite side of Mal. “You… really took pictures.”

“I… thought I might need them,” she says in a small voice. “I thought... in case…” Regina’s eyes meet Robin’s momentarily and then they both look back to Mal. “I needed them.”

“Needed them?”

“Yeah,” she says simply, her voice still small and her eyes teary. “In case Stefan killed me.”

It’s an obvious reason, but that doesn't mean it doesn’t hurt to hear.

“Can, we, um… can we do it tomorrow, though?” She asks, looking between them. “I just.. I can’t quite…”

“Yeah,” Regina murmurs, hugging her a little closer as her voice trails off. “Whatever you want to do,” she says, her own voice catching as tears well up in her eyes, and she hope that this time, she won’t fail her.

[glindalovesshoes]

Pearls Of Time

Written for Day 6 of DOQ week! Thanks to @gray-autumn-sky and @believingispowerfulmagic for betaing!

Pearl Harbor, April 9th 1945

              Spring is here in its full force. It's never really cold around here, even in winter, nothing compared to the harsh winters he's seen in Europe. Those cold, unforgiving winters which have cost so many people their lives. Without food, without firewood, without homes because they had become victims of the war. Frostbite and starvation, the haggard faces of soldiers and civilians that haunt him, that make him shake his head in an attempt to dispel them. Focus, Robin.

              He does - focuses on the hibiscus bush to his left and the flowers which bloom throughout the year and those which just start to blossom now, which make the island of O'ahu an oasis of color. Much better than the concrete desert and destruction he left behind a couple of days ago when he left the sick bay in South England. One can only call it bizarre how some parts of the world drown in death and ashes while this one seems to have more than recovered after the fatal attack of 1941. But that's good. It's good to come home to something… whole.

              Robin shoulders his duffle bag and makes his way slowly down the street, because well, it's not particularly easy with a damaged hip that makes walking a freaking nightmare. Never would he describe himself as an invalid, a casualty of war. Nurse Claire had reassured him that the limping was barely noticeable and he should be glad they didn't amputate his leg two years ago when his plane got hit by a German Messerschmitt and crashed into the English Channel on the way back to the airbase. The injury may be barely noticeable for everyone else, but Robin knows it's there. That's why he keeps clenching his teeth as he follows the street signs until he arrives at the longed for destination. Finally. The warm breeze of the Pacific makes the palm leaves in front of the coral pink Naval Hospital Pearl Harbor swing gently from one side to the other. It's gentle, caressing, inviting, like the soft touch of a lover. So familiar, yet so very… different.

              There are construction works going on, a few buildings have been added. The hospital is not the only thing looking different though. Robin hasn't spent much time here before he left, but the few months in Honolulu before the war happened, had been the best of his life. A life he more than anything wishes to go back to. Can he though? Is it even possible? Everything has changed, everything he used to be familiar with is different. The country, the island, the city, the people… he himself is not who he used to be. Robin remembers the day they arrived at the harbor like it was yesterday, when they came here with plans for their future but in fact, it has been three and a half years. So damn much has happened.  

He drops the duffle bag next to his feet as he watches people heading in and out of the hospital, many of them in the same military uniform he is wearing right now, some in marine uniforms and some in new ones he can't identify. They're probably stationed here, waging the war in the Pacific against Japan. Robin wonders how many mates they've lost, what they've been through. Have they been through anything at all or were they like he used to be - young and naïve and hungry for action, to fight for their country overseas? For a split second he closes his eyes, but the noises of battle and pictures burned into his memory start catching up with him, so he does what Dr. Henry Morgan has told him. Take a deep breath and think of your happy place.

Her face forms instantly in his mind with her fair skin, short, perfectly styled dark curls stopping right above her chin, the elusive and satisfying smile from dark red colored lips he thinks of every time he closes his eyes. And then there are the dark brown orbs, the ones that change their color depending on her mood and the light, the ones he can get lost in over and over again. Every time he thinks of her she's wearing the little white nurse dress with a hat - the one she hated because it would never stay in place no matter how many pins she would fasten it with. It's the outfit she wore when they first met back in New York what it feels like a lifetime ago. He used to carry her picture in his chest pocket but he'd lost it in the plane crash, something he's never really gotten over. All he's left of her is the ring she gave him on their wedding day, the one that hangs around his neck with the pair of dog tags that doesn't belong to him.

Three and a half years, thousands of kilometers and a world at war between them. Yet he found his way back to her, he survived. She was the face that kept him going when he couldn't remember, her voice was the one that spoke to him when he was lost in the darkness, when he almost drowned in his plane in the English Channel. Even when his memory was lost his subconscious could still remember her. The question now is - what does she remember of him?

Continue on FF.net

[outlawqueenbey]

DOQ Week - Day 1 - PDA

The first time someone interrupted their impromptu affections it left Regina flushed with embarrassment, Robin hastily trying to hide his growing erection, and Maleficent less than impressed. It’s new, this thing they have, and while behind closed doors Regina could give two flying fucks about what people think, being caught with her blouse unbuttoned, heels abandoned somewhere, Maleficent's tongue down her throat and Robin grinding into her ass from behind in public is different. Very different.

Thankfully, it was only Hook who had stumbled upon them in the Mayor’s office. He’d commented smugly in that pirate tone just how sorry he was to interrupt such an scene and for them to carry on, not to mind him in the slightest. Regina had kicked him out quickly after his mention that he didn’t take her for a purple lace sort of woman, sent him off with with a few harsh words, irritatingly not before he could send a ridiculous wink to her and bid Robin a happy afternoon with his women. Apparently they needed to make sure all the doors were locked before entertaining themselves.

The second time, Maleficent had her skirt hiked up around her waist, groaning a sinful noise with Robin attached to her neck, his fingers playfully teasing the line of Regina’s silk, very damp, underwear, around the corner of an alleyway that was supposed to be deserted. Unfortunately, nothing in this god forsaken small town is deserted. And why it had to be this dwarf to walk half drunk into their path she will never understand. She loathes him and his loud mouth. His sloshing staggered walk suddenly halted as he stood stunned for a half second before grumbling that they needed to keep their clothes on and find somewhere else to defile. Grumpy old git.

She’d been careful after that. Had done her best to stave off the incessant flirting and affections both her Dragon and Outlaw relentlessly sent her way. Begrudgingly removed their hands that slid a bit too high up her thigh under the diner tables, extricated herself from lips that teased against her earlobe at town hall meetings. They like to test her, and she likes to be teased, but her sex life being the talk of the town isn’t exactly what she wants.

Maleficent doesn’t care. Why would she? There isn’t a soul in Storybrooke that would dare send a cocked eyebrow or let a hushed, curious whisper hit her ears. They are terrified of her. For good reason. The woman instills fear with a single growl in her eyes.

Robin rather enjoys the gentle joke musings of the town folk. Even lets his Merry Men jest and poke for answers about how he has managed to snag not just the Queen but the infamous Dragon sorceress as well. He has two of the most beautiful, powerful women that grace his bed. It’s a man’s dream come true. His happy, smug, dimpled smile he sends Regina after claiming her mouth in front of people is endearingly irritating to her.

They have an understanding of sorts, that it doesn’t matter who is kissing who, even if the third party isn’t there, they are allowed. It gives Regina peace of mind, even tugs at her heart strings when she walks into her office seeing Robin and Mal snuggled up on her sofa, trading gentle loving kisses. There isn’t a shred of jealousy that rolls through her. Not even a peep of a green eyed monster seeing her soulmate kissing another woman. Granted, it’s another love in her life, but still, she’s more than happy to work at her desk and listen to them chatter quietly on between lip smackings. There hasn’t been this feeling of comfort for her before with the three of them, now that Henry and Roland know. They are fine with it, intrigued about Maleficent and her Dragon form, and if it makes their house a happier place, who are they to argue with it.

“Regina, come here.” Maleficent crones from her seated position on Robin’s lap. “I need to tell you something.” A dark blonde eyebrow arches seductively, her neck arching slightly to allow Robin more skin to taste.

“I need to get this budget report done.” She grins back, a flip in her stomach at Robin’s groan towards Maleficent's rolling hips. They are beautiful together. Her lovers. But she doesn’t have time for that right now. Later, yes. But work before play right?

“Oh come on, Madame Mayor, surely you’ll allow yourself a break?” Mal stands, running her fingers through Robin’s hair as she stalks slowly towards Regina. She won’t give in. Not even if her thighs clench a touch tighter under her desk, she will not be distracted. Not even by the heat that radiates off Mal’s breath that ghosts against her cheek, or the feeling of her fingers rolling the tense muscles in her neck. Her eyes close, only because this impromptu massage feels rather nice, not because she is trying to focus her breathing into something less erratic, a losing battle as she hears Robin move from the couch. She will not let them fluster her. She is here to do work and anyone could walk in at any moment.

She should have kept her eyes open. That way she would have realized that Robin’s hands had moved the arms of her chair, slowly beginning to push her away from her desk. “You both need to stop.” Her demand coming out rather breathless and not at all as sharply as she intended.

“Oh come on, love, just a few minutes, then you can go back to your work.”

“I don’t have a few minutes.” She groans as his hands slide up her thighs, tugging the tight material of her skirt up, baring the black garters she wears. The pair of them match in their heated moan towards her attire. She wears it for them. Knows they like the modern lingerie of this realm. Her eyes blink open as Robin falls to his knees, parting her thighs to allow him some space to work. Work. She needs to be doing work. Budget reports, Mal’s tongue against her jaw, budget reports, Robin’s mouth teasing along the inside of her legs, creeping deadly close to where she can’t hide her arousal from them… budget reports… budget reports… the buttons of her blouse pop open thanks to Mal’s fingers…

“Please.”

“Please what, Regina?” Mal hums into her ear, nipping at the lobe in that way that makes Regina squirm in her chair. She wants to give in. Wants to let them devour her on her desk. Wants them naked and sweaty and touching her. It’s just a few minutes. It can’t hurt. She’s allowed to want them, want this. Her resolve crumbles as Robin’s fingers begin to rub over her underwear, circling slowly, trailing up and down, spreading the wetness that pools there.

It’s not her fault that her thighs widen, allowing his tongue to follow the trace of his fingers, and it’s not her fault that she moans and relents her neck to be sucked on by Mal. It’s not her fault they can reduce her to a pile of trembling mess of arousal in a manner of seconds and with a few well placed touches. It’s not her — “Regina? You in there?”

She freezes, eyes popping open to the intruding voice from behind her door.

God damn Snow White for ruining everything. Robin chuckles between her thighs, pressing his fingers harder against her, “You should answer her.”

She should. Doesn’t want to, but if her lovers are persistent, Snow White is damn near impossible to send away.

“Let her watch.” Mal licks into Regina’s neck, “It would be such a scandal for the Mayor to be caught doing things other than her job on office hours now wouldn’t it.”

It’s down right embarrassing, the begging noise that escapes Regina, and for a half second she is about to allow them to carry on. But they both move, tugging her skirt back down, buttoning up her blouse and moving back to the couch before her eyes have even registered they’ve left her, sitting flushed and wet in her chair. Teasing assholes. Tonight she will get them back. Will tie them both up and have her way with them.

“Come in Snow.”  She glowers at the pair who laugh on the couch as the door swings open.

“Oh! I’m sorry I didn’t know you had company.”

“Yes, well, what do you want?”

“I was just wondering how the school budget reports were coming, we are hoping to hire some new teachers.”

“Yes, Snow, I am aware. I’ll have them done for you by the end of today like I said yesterday when you came in to ask.”

Mal sniggers into Robin’s neck, oblivious to the shocked look Snow sends their way. It boils Regina’s blood. That they have this ease in their affections for one another regardless of who is in the room. She wants to be kissing them.

“Anything else?” She huffs towards Snow, though her eyes don’t completely leave Robin’s hands running up and down Mal’s back and into the golden tresses of her hair. She likes Mal’s hair. Damn them both.

“Are you still coming to David’s birthday dinner tonight at Granny’s?”

“I said I was.”

“Right, uhh, well then I’ll just leave you all alone.”

Thank God!

Snow leaves far too quickly and Regina slumps back into her chair, feeling the slippery wetness between her thighs still very much apparent.

“I hate you both.”

She half expects them to return to touching her, but apparently they both have a different train of thought as they rise from the couch, kissing her each far too chastely before stepping back beyond her reach. “We should leave you to your work.” Mal smiles, reaches for Robin’s hand and sends Regina a giddy wink as they head to the door, leaving Regina rather unamused as her office door clicks shut and the quiet settles in.

She frowns down at the budget reports littering her desk. One hour, that’s all the time they will take from her. One hour and then she will head to the diner.

One hour turns into three and she is down right furious by the time she grabs her bag and slams the door shut behind her. The party is in full swing as she enters, seems the entire town is out celebrating. She sees them standing beside the bar, chatting with Ruby and August, surrounded by people. They look perfect. Are perfect and they are hers. Curious glances and smug chuckles be damned. She doesn’t even say hello as she heads straight on towards them. Not even Robin’s quick greeting is enough to slow her down. They started this hours ago and she will damn well end it.

Hauling Robin’s mouth to her own, she inhales him, greedy and sloppily, tasting the ale on his tongue. They part with a pop and a stunned breath from him before her head turns to Maleficent, claiming the dragon’s mouth in much the same manner. She swallows Mal’s hum, presses harder into her for a fraction of a second till the gruff tone of Granny’s “Alright this isn’t a bloody brothel.” tears her away.

She flushes. All eyes are on her and the rather impromptu public display of affection she so rarely gives into.

Screw them all. She will kiss her lovers if she damn well pleases.

[brookeap3]

Unexpected Encounters

A casual evening takes an interesting turn when Maleficent suggests she and Robin smoke some of her herbs and they end up getting high together. Hidden desires come to light. Dragon Outlaw with hints of DOQ.

{ ffn } { ao3 }

A/N: For my Dragon Outlaw partner in crime, @the-alpha-incipiens I hope this adds to your birthday, dear. Thanks to D for the inspiration for this little indulgence.

It's an odd sort of friendship they've formed in last few months. When the dragon had arrived at the Queen’s castle out of the blue (much to the surprise and confusion of nearly every member within their party) Robin would have expected her to want to enact revenge on him and his men for their transgressions against her. It would seem, however, that years of imprisonment in Storybrooke have mellowed her out rather than sharpened her claws.

Oh, she is still plenty feisty. Can hold her own better than anyone he knows, save perhaps for the queen herself. But as Robin has gotten to know her he’s discovered that as thick skinned as she might be, Maleficent has a soft side. For some inexplicable reason, she’s deigned him worthy enough to be witness to it, what that reasoning might be, he will likely never know.

Their relationship makes no sense to anyone, but, still, it's a friendship nonetheless. Or… we'll it's something.

He'd be lying if he said he hasn't had a few rather improper thoughts where Maleficent is concerned, the occasional rather intimate dreams of her smooth, pale skin. Limbs bare and trembling beneath his attentions as he runs his mouth over every inch of her body. Those always leave him breathless and aching, force him out of bed in the early hours of dawn to work out his frustrations with his bow and a quiver full of arrows.

Of course, those are the days he tends to run into her majesty as well. Encounters that are filled with barbs and sharp retorts, endless bickering that can be described as nothing short of sexual tension. There's something about her that pulls at him, makes him want her with a desperation he's never felt before in his life. Those days only lead to a jumbled array of feelings and emotions, desires he hasn't quite determined how best to handle for two equally fiery and passionate women mixing and merging into one.

It's been a confusing few months for him to say the least.

But while Robin doesn't appear to have made any progress in turning Regina’s opinion of him in his favor, Maleficent is a different story. She likes him. Has told him as much, but it's still nice to have his presence in her life acknowledged.

They dine together. Sometimes with the Merry Men, Roland animatedly telling her of his day and his many adventures. Mal is wonderful with him, a pleasant surprise and not something he would have expected of a dragon like herself. But she has a natural ability with children it would seem. It’s only later, when he’s truly gained the privilege of her trust that he learns of the daughter she’d lost. It would seem she and the queen have a bit more in common than he realized.

He spies Regina eyeing them with an expression he can't quite decipher almost always on these evenings. Immediately turning to draw Snow into a discussion as soon as she realizes he's watching her watch them. But then she and Roland have their own special bond as well. Maybe that’s the reason for the hint of jealousy he glimpses in her gaze before she turns away.

Other times it's just them. Sitting alone together at one of the many tables scattered throughout the great hall. Sometimes they discuss ways to protect themselves and these people from the Wicked Witch, but more often than not that end up speaking of life and love, friendship and family.

This is how their curious friendship forms. In the quiet moments of the day, between bites of bread and sips of wine as they get to know one another as human beings rather than natural enemies.

Tonight they’ve had a bit more wine and ale than they usually indulge themselves in, though they’re just barely edging on buzzed, and when Maleficent had suggested they retire to her chambers for a while, Robin had easily agreed. Little John’s already offered to put Roland to bed, so Robin has nothing to concern himself with except the woman now sitting opposite him on the cushions surrounding her hearth, a roaring fire heating their skin. She brings the wine with them, pouring them each a bit into the goblets she conjures with a flick of her wrist.

“Cheers,” she offers, a sly smile on her lips as Robin clinks his cup with hers.

He takes a sip, lets the rich liquid slide down his throat, through his limbs as he watches the firelight flicker over her skin. His mind wanders for a moment, imagining what it might be like to brush the tips of his fingers over her flesh, down the exposed skin of her bicep, but he’s startled out of his musing as her next words reach his ears. “Pardon?”

Maleficent smirks, sweeps her tongue out to wet her lips and repeats calmly, amusement coloring her tone, “Have you ever been high before, thief?”

Robin has to swallow down the sudden lump in his throat at the unexpected question, taking another small sip of wine and clearing his throat. “As a matter of fact, yes. Though not for quite some time, I must admit. But I’ve been known to dally in certain herbs and substances in my rather darker days.”

Those last few words cause Mal to chuckle, two rich clear laughs as she tells him, “I would have liked to have known you in those days.” Her tone drops, turning low and husky. “I bet Dark Robin was especially fun.”

He shakes his head. “Oh I don’t know about that. I’m sure you and I could have gotten ourselves into a world of trouble had we been friends in those days.” Indeed, it would certainly have made his life all the more interesting. “But that was quite some time ago, I’m not the same man I was then.”

“Hmmmm,” she hums, leaning in closer to him, her breath ghosting over Robin’s mouth and chin as she murmurs quietly, “Let’s bring him back.”

Frowning, Robin struggles to comprehend exactly what she means by that until he watches her wave her hand with a flutter, a bowl and violet colored pouch appearing in the palm of her hand with a swirl of her magic. Ahhhhh, so that’s what she’s about this evening.

They shouldn’t. They’re grown adults and he has a child to care for, though Roland is surely sound asleep and safe under John’s supervision. So Robin supposes there’s not any real legitimate reason that they can’t indulge themselves a bit more. What harm will it do?

“Alright,” he agrees impulsively, pleased with himself when a slow smiles spreads over Mal’s lips at his answer.

“Excellent.” Mal flips her long hair over one of her shoulders, adjusting herself a bit on the cushion she sits on, drawing her knees further beneath the long hem of the dress she wears. Robin watches as she loosens the drawstring of the pouch, pulling out a portion of the herbs within and packing it into the hollow end of the bowl. In a matter of moments it’s ready and Mal pulls the strings again, laying the pouch back down on the floor between them as she lifts the bowl.

There’s a hint of mischief in her gaze as her blue eyes lock onto Robin’s, never wavering as she smirks and then purses her lips together to form a tiny ‘o’ shape and lets out a small, steady stream of fire, lighting the mixture up and quickly wrapping her lips around the mouthpiece to breathe in before the spark dissipates.

Well, he hadn’t been expecting that. A pang of desire stabs him deep within his belly as he watches her take the hit, gaze glued to her red lips. She closes her eyes for a moment to enjoy that initial feeling of letting the smoke fill her lungs, exhaling slowly, and Robin uses it to try and rein in his hormones a bit. He’s not supposed to be having these thoughts about the woman opposite him.

“You’re turn,” Mal tells him with a grin.  

When she hands it off to Robin, he pinches it between his fingers, brings the glass opening to his mouth and pauses as Maleficent leans in, their faces mere inches apart as she daintily blows another stream of fire through her lips, lighting the herbs on fire for a moment as Robin inhales. And god, it’s so sexy. One perk to having a dragon for a friend Robin supposes, inappropriate as it may be.

They continue like that for the next several minutes, passing the bowl back and forth between them, taking turns, Maleficent lighting it each and every time. By the time the collection of herbs she has initially packed has dwindled away, Robin can’t quite help the evidence of how much he wants this woman, though he does his best to hide it.

But she’s smiling and laughing, hand stroking up and down the forearm Robin has resting along the edge of the chaise. Apparently Maleficent turns quite giggly and affectionate when high, and the knowledge that she’s allowing him to see her this way nearly knocks him on his ass. If he weren’t already on it. The thought has a snicker erupting from Robin as his brain drifts from one nonsequential thought to another, his body feeling detached, mind becoming a touch hazy.

Narrowing her eyes at him, Mal questions, “What’s so funny, thief?”

“Nothing,” Robin responds, another snicker he just barely stifles bubbling forth.

Somehow they’ve shifted closer, their limbs loose and heavy as they lounge on the cushions Mal favors. Their backs rest on the chaise lounge opposite the fire, but it really serves no other purpose than to support them as they grin and giggle at each other. Robin’s hand reaches up to twirl a lock of her long blonde curls around his index finger.

His mind is wandering again, floating almost, and he can’t quite stem the unconscious stream of this thoughts. It’s how he finds himself confessing to her, “Do you realize how beautiful you are?” Immediately, Robin realizes the absurdness of his words and laughs it off. “What am I saying? Of course you do. You’re Maleficent. Fierce dragon, strong warrior,” his speech is a bit slurred as his mind rambles, his hand continuing to wind and unwind that strip of hair around his finger, words spilling out of him, “tempting seductress. You would have to know.”

Lord, he should shut up. Some part in the back of Robin’s brain realizes what an idiot he sounds like, that he’s rambling thoughts that are better kept to himself. They’ll only complicate whatever this delicate friendship they have going is. He’s only making a fool of himself. The trouble is, relaxed as he is, the attraction he feels toward this woman is sharper, harder for him to bury beneath his chivalrous and honorable nature. His desire is more difficult to tamp down presently.

The very last thing Robin expects is for Mal’s eyes to flair with desire. For a minute he thinks it may just be a trick of the fire, the flickering flames toying with his vision and his hopeful heart teasing him. That is until Mal hums, bites her lower lip and stares at him through heavy lidded eyes, then shifts so she can straddle his lap, her knees landing on either side of his hips, hiking up the long hem of her dress to just above her knees.

One of her arms drapes over his shoulder, curling around his neck as her other hands lifts and rubs over the stubble on his jaw, her thumb stroking up and down. Her breath is a little heavier, more so than usual and he can’t determine if it’s from their new positions or the high, but it has Robin’s breath backing up in his lungs. Or perhaps that’s due to the way Mal’s rocking her hips into him slightly, nothing too hard, but it’s enough that he feels himself growing even stiffer in his pants.

His hands grip at her hips, and she’s so tiny, Robin’s fingers easily curl around her body, his thumbs stroking over her hip bones, even through the material of the dress she wears. He’s never realized just how small she is. Of course he knows she’s tall and slender, she has several inches on him after all, but he’s never really thought about it. Not until now, his mind zeroing in on this detail until Mal tips his face back up from where he studies her hips to meet her gaze.

“What are you doing?” Robin questions. Everything’s heightened, his senses sharpened and he can smell the soft scent of her perfume now, sweet and tangy at the same time. It reminds him of honey and suddenly he wants to bury his nose into the soft skin of her neck, to inhale that scent as he peppers her exposed throat with kisses.

But this is new territory for them, and he’s not at all sure of what his next move should be, cautious of taking the wrong step in either direction, despite her bold move to his lap. And try as he might, Robin can’t quite let go of that gentlemanly streak within him, doesn’t want to do anything that would cause this woman discomfort.

Mal trails the tip of her finger down Robin’s throat, her nail scratching lightly over his skin as she hums, “Do you want me, Robin?”

She knows he does, the evidence of that fact is pressing up into her, she’s grinding down into it, grinning mischievously as she waits for his answer. That tongue peeks out to swipe across her bottom lip again and Robin can’t contain his groan as he watches her do it. Ocean colored eyes meet her own sky blue and his fingers flex at her hips. He should stop this, whatever the hell this is. Should go back to his own chambers and take a cold bath, sober up so he can look her in the eye tomorrow morning as her friend.

To hell with that, though.

Robin may be an honorable man, but he’s no saint, and only a fool would turn away from the gorgeous goddess currently perched on top of him. Those hands slide up her sides, wrapping around her back and stroking up her spine as he draws her closer to him. One hand slips into her loose curls, cupping the back of her head as he answers, “Quite ardently, milady.”  

Maleficent snorts, dropping her forehead to his, and maybe it’s the root they’ve been smoking or she simply just finds humor in what he’s said but she’s suddenly giggling, shoulders shaking with mirth as she tells him. “That’s such a medieval term. Milady.” She draws back enough that her face is no longer a blurry vision before him, but she wraps both her arms more firmly around his neck in return.

“Excuse me,” Robin scoffs, fingers drawing random patterns over her back, “I happen to think it a term of respect.”

Her lips curve up in a slow smile. “And if I don’t want you to be respectful?”

Oh. Well.

Before Robin has much of a chance to think on that particular statement, Mal’s swooping her mouth down to his, their lips meeting in a passionate kiss. It’s amazing, heat arrowing through his gut instantly as she sucks at his bottom lip, Robin returning the favor. Their tongues waste no time in exploring the taste of each other either. Sweeping in and out as their mouths part and come together over and over.

Her nose bumps along his cheek as Robin’s hands stroke up and down her spine, eager to touch every part of her that he can. His desire only sharpening when she moans into his mouth, fusing them together and grinding harder against him, her torso and breasts pressing into his chest.

The lack of oxygen on his already addled brain has is blood singing, head feeling light and dizzy as he drowns in the taste of Maleficent’s mouth. Everything feels surreal. The softness of her lips, her scent overwhelming his senses, the weight of her atop him, her fingers gripping his hair. What on earth had he done to be gifted this moment of existence?

“Mmmm, I knew you were skilled with your hands, thief, but your mouth isn’t bad either,” Mal murmurs into his ear as she finally breaks the kiss, gulping in air as Robin tucks his face into her neck and licks along the sensitive skin there.

He chuckles, wrapping his arms more fully around her slim form and enveloping her in his embrace. “I aim to please, milady.” Robin answers, emphasising the endearment and causing Maleficent to laugh and pull away to grin down at him.

Robin’s own lips stretch into a broad smile, his thumb caressing along the base of her spine until Mal gets that gleam in her eyes again and he knows he’s in trouble. When she loosens her grip on his hair and reaches around behind her to take his hands in her own, bringing them around to cup her breasts, Robin’s mouth goes dry.

“Oh, god.” He exclaims, can’t help from cupping the ample flesh in his palms, kneading gently. Encouraged by the breathy gasps Maleficent lets out, he thumbs over her nipples, flicking against the stiff peaks through the thin material. Dipping his head, Robin takes one in his mouth, suckling through fabric as he massages her other breast in his hand. Her fingers dig into his shoulders, hips circling in a steady rhythm against his. Every moan and shudder he draws out of her shimmers over Robin until he’s ravenous to taste her, all of her.

Suddenly, he shifts them, looping an arm around her waist and laying her back onto the bed of pillows around them. He settles between her legs easily, enjoying the way Mal wraps her leg around his hip instantly and giggles at their change in position.

“Taking charge are you?” she questions.

Robin grins and drops his mouth to the exposed line of her throat, kissing down her chest and the deep v of her neckline to her sternum. “And if I am?” Robin counters. Her skin is soft and smooth and he wants to strip her of every inch of clothing she wears, his mind narrowed to that singular desire above all others. But he can be patient. And Robin doesn’t intend to rush any minute of this strange and wonderful encounter.

Bringing his mouth back up to hers, Robin pecks a kiss to her lips as Mal grins and tells him, “I like it.”

Her hands roam over his back and shoulders, lower to squeeze playfully at his bum, resulting in a groan from Robin as he grinds his erection into her. Arching her back a bit as he skims his palms along her curves, over every dip from shoulder to hip to thigh where he caresses the bare skin he finds, Mal sighs in pleasure. Her other foot rubs along his leg, anchoring herself to thrust her hips against his as their mouths find one another again for what seems like forever.

A gasp that comes from neither himself nor Maleficent distracts Robin from the way Mal’s tongue soothes the ache left behind from her biting at his lower lip. His head snaps up to see Regina standing in the doorway, startled expression on her face as she stares at them. As much as she would like to believe she is capable of hiding herself away from the world, Robin sees every flicker of emotion that plays over her face clearly.

Surprise. Envy. Longing.

Until it finally settles on annoyance and with a huff, Regina crosses her arms tightly over her chest. “Excuse me. I didn’t realize Maleficent was… occupied.”

Robin’s cheeks heat. He hasn’t a clue what he and Regina are to one another. Nothing really by any measure of normalcy, but there’s something that draws them together, however much Regina puts on a show to fight it. And here she’s found him nestled hovering between her oldest friend’s thighs. A hint of shame and confusion flickers through him, but Robin can’t regret anything that’s passed between him and the dragon this evening. Even if he wanted to. He cares for her as well.

The breathy chuckle from beneath him draws Robin’s gaze from Regina’s to Mal’s and she’s tilting her head back to grin at the queen, stroking her hand up and down his bicep as her toes rub up and down his calf. “Robin and I decided to try some of my old herbs, you remember them, little one, don’t you? And, well,” her chin tips down to look at him, delight in her blue irises, before returning her focus to Regina, “have you seen him?”

Regina shifts on the balls of her feet, uncomfortable, pointedly avoiding looking at Robin at all as she spits out, “I don’t care what you two do with your time.” It sounds exactly like the lie it is, but she merely grips her arms harder and sends the blonde a pointed look.

Finally shifting off of Maleficent, Robin sits back on the heels of his feet. He’s still high and his reflexes aren’t quite at the top of his game, but he allows Mal to sit up, keeping a hand lightly on her knee as she turns to study the other woman. Apparently she’s lost just enough of her inhibitions to speak the truth the trio has been tiptoeing around for weeks now. “Now we both know that’s not true, Regina.”

She huffs exasperatedly, but doesn’t deny the accusation. Those gorgeous chocolate brown eyes of hers have darkened several shades, but there’s an edge of desire she can’t hide in her gaze. Robin can see it even from her, and lord help him, but he wants her too. Wants both of them so much he hasn’t a clue what to do or say. His senses are dulled and heighted all at the same time and all he can focus on is his desire for each of these women.

Fortunately, Mal has a better grip on herself and the situation it would seem. She wraps his arm around her shoulder from behind, caressing up and down the side of it as she says, “I don’t believe the thief or I would mind if you joined us. There’s plenty to go around.”

The dual meaning of her words settles over Robin and Regina and leaves them both momentarily speechless. He’s a bit in denial that any of this is happening, it feels like bloody madness. Some hazy dream that he is surely going to wake from any moment now, confused and aching in his bed.

But it’s not a dream. The heat of Maleficent’s body radiating next to his and the scent of Regina’s perfume wafting across the room remind him of that. He’s watching her, trying to decipher her reaction to Mal’s proposition and given the fact she is both still standing there, and appears to be mulling it over, are a shock to Robin.

When Regina drops her arms and that look of annoyance morphs into one of deadly seduction as she saunters over to where they sit, kneeling onto a cushion of her own in front of Maleficent, stroking her fingertips down the side of the blonde’s face and eyeing Robin from beneath her lashes, he’s taken completely aback. Even more so when she murmurs huskily, “I suppose you might be able to make it worth my while.”

It seems tonight is an evening of surprises all around.

[shinewithalltheuntold]

Fic - We Say the Words and Sign Our Names

Part One of a Dragon Queen fic I’ve been working on for months. I usually don’t post until a fic is finished, but I’m hoping the guilt will prompt me to finish it sooner rather than later.  And because the lovely @oparu is sick and deserves fic.

So, DQ fic set in non-magical Storybrooke.  This has a strong helping of Outlaw Queen BroTP as well, so don’t read if that’s not your thing.  It also features Mal issuing a smackdown on Cora, because I can’t seem to write DQ fic that does not feature Mal issuing a smackdown on Cora. 

Rated T. 

Mal refused to get married in Storybrooke.

When the election results came in, 53% in favor, they didn’t even talk about it.  Mal had just looked down at their entwined hands, raised one of those perfectly sculpted brows at her, and that was it.  They were getting married.  So when the details came down and December 29th became “the date,” Regina just assumed they would get their license at City Hall. Especially considering that the licensure office was literally two doors down from hers.

But Mal had balked.  I am not going to get married in this town full of narrow-minded, judgmental hypocrites. She had been insistent that nothing of their marriage was going to be “tainted by this town and their pettiness”; when she phrased it like that, Regina could hardly disagree.

The plan had been for them to drive down to Portland on the 28th (because there was little Mal hated more than feeling rushed when she was driving somewhere and there was little Regina hated more than a stressed out Mal behind the wheel) after Regina had finished up all her mayoral business for the day, get their license and be wed and back in Storybrooke for New Year’s.  That plan had been derailed by Hurricane Cora blowing into town.  She had shown up at Regina’s doorstep a week before Christmas on the pretense of spending the holidays with her only child since Henry had “abandoned her for his white trash birth mother.” Stating that she wouldn’t allow Regina to spend Christmas alone, she had – quite literally – pushed her way into Regina’s house intent on bullying her daughter into letting her stay.

But the unstoppable force that was Cora Mills had not counted on the immovable object that was Mallory Griffin, attorney at law.

They had met once before, years ago in New York at an event held by the firm Regina and Mal both worked for. But Regina and Mal were all but over at that point – it was only a couple months later that Henry’s adoption was finalized and Regina informed a resigned Mal that she was moving back to Storybrooke to raise Henry – so Cora had taken little note of her daughter’s “good friend”.  

That had been then, though. This was now.  And now Mal was a fixture in Regina’s life.  Her take no prisoners attorney in a messy and painful custody battle and now her live-in girlfriend (the fiancée part was still a secret to everyone but Robin and Archie).  And a woman who absolutely refused to be cowed by Cora’s presence.

It had been two weeks of hell.  Two weeks of Cora doing her best to gaslight Regina at every turn.  Remind her that she was alone, that her son had abandoned her and the town hated her and she could never possibly be happy without Cora’s help and guidance.

But it was also heaven. Because it was two weeks of Mal thwarting Cora at every turn.  She’d had help; Robin was always willing to tell Regina’s mother to go to hell and Archie was always there to remind her that escaping her mother’s abuse had been an act of immense strength and she had been alone that time like she wasn’t now. Most surprisingly, though, had been the unexpected support from Emma Swan.  

The custody battle had been over for weeks, but the tentative state of détente she’d reached with her son’s birth mother had in no way prepared her for the way Emma had stood in the middle of Granny’s diner and very loudly and publicly told Cora how impressed she was that Regina was able to be such a good mother to Henry when she’d had such a miserable excuse for a role model to look up to.  The words hadn’t come as a surprise to Cora – Robin had said the same thing more than once – but that Emma had been the source of them had stunned her enough to send her from the diner in uncharacteristic silence. Regina had followed, of course. Mother was never silent for long, and her retribution would be ridiculously disproportionate and no doubt affect Henry as well as Emma.  But she’d managed a small but sincere thank you before leaving, and those few moments had managed to bring them to a shared understanding she was sure neither of them would have thought possible.  Their relationship, and her relationship with Henry, had been making slow but steady progress since.

In the end, though, it wasn’t Emma or Robin or Archie that ended her mother’s reign of terror.  It was Mal.  Because while the others stood up for her, they were too straightforward in their approaches. They weren’t the type to play games, and so were unprepared to go up against someone who did nothing but.  They acted exactly as Mother expected they would, and she was able to prepare accordingly.  Mal, though. Mal had grown up in a world made up of Cora’s and the type of games Cora played.  

And in the end, Mal played them better.

Because while Cora hadn’t bothered to take note of her in that meeting all those years ago, Mal had definitely taken note of Cora.  And had spent the ensuing decade gathering every scrap of evidence, every hint of wrongdoing, every speck of dirt on Regina’s mother that she could find.  She had taken note of Cora’s strategies and created countermoves for each.  By the time Cora had come back to Storybrooke to reclaim her daughter, she had already lost.  She just hadn’t known it.

Mal was more than happy to show her.

She could have chased Cora from town that first night.  But she’d wanted Regina to have the chance to stand up to her mother, to say once and for all that Cora was no longer welcome in her life.  Something Regina had never dared for fear of Mother’s retribution. For fear of another Daniel.  

She was right to fear. When she finally managed to order Cora out of her life the Friday after New Year’s, the coiled snake hiding under the guise of concerned mother had struck.  Cora knew every soft spot Regina had and attempted to sink her teeth into each one.  Her venomous words of threat against Robin did the town know about their fire chief’s unlawful youth? and Emma your investigators were inept, darling if that’s all they uncovered about that piece of trash and even Roland that poor child would be devastated if he were sent to England to live with his grandparents, don’t you think? By the end Regina was trembling and terrified and ready to acquiesce to her mother’s every demand if it meant protecting her loved ones.

And that’s when Mal struck back.  Not with righteous anger or legal threats.  No, Mal had latched onto Cora’s one area of vulnerability.  Her need for power.  She had calmly tossed the file folder, thick with information collected over the years, on the table in front of Cora and walked to Regina.  Had wrapped her arms around Regina even as every damning page wrapped its coils tighter around Cora and squeezed.  Cora hadn’t made it even halfway through before throwing the file into the fireplace, one hand pressed to her stomach as she tried to catch her breath.  Mal had just laughed, told her that she had a dozen copies secreted in different places across the globe with people not even Cora could touch.  And then suddenly she was in front of Cora, using her greater height to loom over the older woman as she quietly explained that if anything happened to her or Regina or Robin or anyone else Regina cared about, every bit of information would be on the worldwide web within minutes and Cora would be lucky to be arrested before her enemies got hold of her.

In the end it was Cora who was left trembling and terrified as she fled the mansion and the town (with a sheriff’s car trailing her and a fire chief’s command truck parked strategically at the town line), leaving all her things behind.  Mal had wanted to burn them, but Regina had packed them up and paid the exorbitant shipping fees to return them to Cora in Paris.  She told Mal that she didn’t want a trace of her mother left behind, even as ashes in the hearth.  

That should have been the end of it. Mal clearly thought it would be.  She had begun rescheduling their trip almost as soon as Cora’s car hit the town line.  But Regina hesitated.  Found reasons to postpone - emergencies that required her attention, and concerns over Henry’s reaction to their marriage.  Mal reminded her that her staff was more than capable of handling any issues that arose, and that Archie was confident that making their bond permanent would actually help Henry to feel more settled and secure.  But still the weeks passed and they weren’t married.

It was Robin who finally forced her to face the truth.  

They’d missed spending New Year’s with each other for the first time in years thanks to Cora, so when he’d suggested a belated celebration she’d jumped at the chance.  Now she sat in her usual place on his sofa, curled up under a blanket with her feet resting in his lap and a glass of champagne in her hand.  

“She is being completely unreasonable about it!” Regina insisted, “I can’t just ignore my duties, and Henry is –“

“Henry is fine, Regina,” Robin cut her off. “He is adapting to everything, and you are mending your relationship.  And you know Archie said that you and Mal marrying will help Henry feel more settled and secure in the long run.”

“He doesn’t know that for sure,” Regina argued, but it was half-hearted at best.  Archie was good at his job.  She trusted him not to lead her astray when it came to easing Henry’s wounds from the past year. Still… “She just doesn’t understand how hard it is and it is so frustrating.  She makes me so….so….”

“Terrified.” Regina’s head flew up at Robin’s declaration. “She makes you terrified.”

“What?” She sat up so quickly that her champagne sloshed over the rim of her glass. “I am NOT terrified of Mal.”

“Aren’t you?” Robin challenged her as he nudged her feet off his lap. He placed his own glass on the coffee table before plucking hers from her hand and setting it next to his own.

“No! Why would you even say that?” She asked, pulling her legs up to her chest and wrapping her arms tightly around them. He shifted so they were face to face and placed a hand on her knee, squeezing gently.

“Oh, I don’t know.  Because ever since she ran your mother out of town you’ve been pulling away from her like she’s got some bloody plague?”

“I have not.” Regina insisted. She hesitated before asking, “You…you think she would do to me what she did to my mother? Gather information on me? Try to ruin my life?”

“Do you?”

“NO.” Regina didn’t understand.  Robin had been the first one to support her relationship with Mal, even though Mal had been pretty antagonistic towards him when she’d first arrived in Storybrooke. He was the last person she’d expect to think Mal would hurt her.  “She would never do that to me.  Ever.”

“No, she wouldn’t,” Robin agreed easily before adding, “And that’s what frightens you.”

Regina glared at him. “You realize you aren’t making any sense.”

“You’re right about Mal.  She would never do that to you.” She started to respond but he continued, “But she would do it FOR you. She already did it once.  And she’ll do it again if she has to.  She’ll do anything for you – she loves you that much.  And that fucking TERRIFIES you.”

Regina shook her head wordlessly, but couldn’t find the words to deny his.  Robin pressed his advantage.

“She LOVES you, Regina.  She’s loved you for over ten years.” He reached out and took her hands in his own.  They were like an oven against her icy skin. “Ten years, Regina.  She’s not going to leave you.”

“That doesn’t mean I won’t lose her.” She looked at him, eyes bright with unshed tears. “I can’t lose her, Robin.  Not like I lost him.”

“You won’t,” he said, and she couldn’t understand how he could sound so certain.  Not when he’d suffered as she had.  Not when he’d lost Marian as cruelly as she’d lost Daniel.

“You don’t know that.” A tear escaped and he reached up and brushed it away, leaving his hand to rest on her cheek.

“No, I don’t.” He smiled softly and raised his other hand to her face. “But I have faith, Regina.  I have faith that the universe is finally going to give you a break, and let you have the happiness you’ve always deserved.”

She looked down, unable to meet his loving gaze any longer. “Do I?  I’m not a good person, Robin. I’ve done awful things.”

“So have I.  So has Mal,” he pointed out. “But we’re trying to do better.  For ourselves, and the boys, and each other.  And we all deserve the chance for something good in our lives.  ALL of us, Regina.  Even you.”

“I’m so scared,” she whispered, and that was the final straw for Robin.  He slipped his hands down to her biceps, gently tugging her into his arms.

“Because you love her. Just as fiercely as she loves you.” He pressed a kiss to her hair. “I can’t guarantee you won’t lose her someday, Regina. But she’s not going to leave voluntarily, The only way you’re guaranteed to lose her is if you keep pushing her away. Isn’t better to love her for as long as you can?”

She took a deep breath, taking comfort in the familiar scent of this man who had been her friend and protector and defender for years. Remembered all the times he had been there to comfort and confront and show her the truth her scars sometimes blinded her to.  

Like now. So she nodded her head and whispered a soft “yes” – even if she was right, even if they were torn apart in the end, loving Mal was worth it.  Just as loving Daniel had been.

“Then do it,” Robin said. “Love her.  I promise, you won’t regret it.”

And so she did. Walked home that night, the long way, but it gave her time to think.  To absorb Robin’s words into her heart so that by the time she finally reached home, she was ready.  Ready to walk into their bedroom.  Strip down and crawl into bed and ignore the way Mal was pretending to be asleep. Wrap an arm around her from behind and press a soft kiss to her cheek before whispering, “President’s Day weekend. We can drive down Thursday right after work.  Not the most romantic Valentine’s Day but-“

“I hate Valentine’s Day,” Mal said, giving up the pretense of sleep.  Regina smiled.

“You hate Valentine’s Day. So we get in the car and drive. That way we can avoid all the saps out there giving each other moon eyes but still get the perks of free champagne and chocolate in our hotel room when we arrive.”

Regina propped herself up on one elbow and leaned over to kiss Mal again, but Mal remained tense in her arms.  “What makes you so sure we can get a hotel?” she challenged, shifting out of Regina’s hold and turning to face her. “It is a holiday, after all.  Two of them.”

Regina resisted rolling her eyes because she knew that Mal’s prickliness was entirely her fault.  But she couldn’t quite control the note of incredulity as she responded, “We’re us, Mal.  We can get a hotel.”

“Are you sure?” Mal’s voice was too soft, too hesitant.  They both knew she wasn’t talking about the hotel room, and Regina felt a wave of guilt that she had made Mal feel insecure for even a moment.  She wanted to apologize, wanted to beg forgiveness and smother Mal in declarations of love, but that wasn’t their style so instead she just leaned forward and pressed her lips briefly against Mal’s.

“Positive.”

A bright, glorious smile spread slowly across Mal’s face.  She reached out and entwined her fingers with Regina’s.  “All right.  Let’s do it.”

And they did.

-------------------------------

[oqpromptparty]

Hi everyone! If you’d like to take part in this year’s Prompt Party Week, just select any of the prompts from the list below and write a fic, make a video or create some art based on it. Please note that more than one person may choose the same prompt.

You may submit new stories or include the prompts in any of your existing verses (though all your entries must be posted for the first time during Prompt Party Week). 

Artists & Video makers may use any of the prompts, but there are some Art/Video specific ones at the bottom of the post.

I have condensed some of the prompts that were a little too long… and feel free to take some liberties with some of the more specific prompts!

If you have any questions, please tweet @OQPromptParty

OQ Prompt Party week will run from 19th - 25th March. Please don’t post anything until then.

Prizes:

Everyone who posts a prompt for all seven days of the OQ Prompt Party week will be sent a limited edition, one of a kind Outlaw Queen button/badge. These will never be available again, so don’t miss out!

Each day there will also be the opportunity to win another prize. You will be entered into a prize draw and the more prompts you write, the more times your name will be entered into the draw. I will announce which prizes will be available on each day soon.

There will also be a separate prize for most prompts included in a single one-shot/chapter (crack!fic encouraged).

And now! Without further ado, here are your prompts:

Regina and Robin are friends who accidentally sleep with one another, except not so accidentally

Roland is grown up and thinks he’s finally discovered how to bring back Robin Hood - but he needs Regina’s help

Regina eventually moved on, but then Robin comes back into her life.

Dark!OQ first kiss.

During the French Revolution, Robin is a  prosecutor who acts like a spy at court for Robespierre.

Robin owes the Queen a debt so she has made him her servant til it is repaid.  

Robin makes three wishes.

Co-Stars falling in love.

Robin and Regina used to date/were married. They’re no longer together but still love one another.

First Curse AU: Robin is in Storybrooke during the first curse and dated Mayor Mills while still cursed.  Then the curse breaks.

Robin catches Regina watching "Bridezilla" & "Say Yes to the Dress" and starts planning a secret wedding based on her commentary.

Regina meeting DarkOQ's baby (with them alive)

Robin or Regina get turned into an animal unbekownst to the other who ends up caring for them for a bit before the curse is broken and then it's all like awkward....you liked me as a fox.

OQ/Belle friendship.

Roland and Robyn meet for the first time.

No one dies and everything ends happy

Robin is there when Regina finds out she’s going to be a  grandmother.

Robin or Regina have a bad habit the other tries to help them break.

Regina is pregnant and she and Robin watch a birthing video together.

Learning how to snapchat.

Robin’s soul didn’t get obliterated when Hades stabbed him and his soul got trapped in Regina’s mirror

Page 23 showing up out of nowhere.

Regina feels burdened by the guilt of all the people she has murdered.  Robin supports her with this.

Cora tries to separate Robin and Regina.

Based on this story https://www.thevintagenews.com/2018/02/20/king-pedro/

Regina and Robin meet at a hospital as they both have to sit in a waiting room waiting for hours on news about some members of their family.

Dark OQ meet Maleficent.

Regina self harming and Robin noticing

During the missing year, Regina sees herself in her mirror with Robin's tattoo tattooed on her.

Regina finds out that she’s actually Zeus or Hera’s daughter and demands that Robin be brought back.

Robin's backstory for any story or as a stand alone for the one we were promised.

Underworld. Regina telling Robin about her father’s death? Some of Robin’s demons.

In season 2, Regina went to the EF through Jefferson’s hat, and meets people who escaped the first curse; her mother, and her soulmate.

Bladerunner AU. As a bladerunner, Robin is sent on a mission to retire a rogue replicant, Regina.

Facilier's magic enables Regina to speak to Robin one last time. (Feel free to include him being semi or fully corporeal if you wish.)

Robin or Regina have to pick up a drunk Henry or Roland.

Henry comes out as ace/bi/etc to Regina and Robin.

Robin gets jealous when Regina and Mal work together a lot on something in secret. (DOQ or OQ)

Vampire AU.

Regina and Robin have a big fight. Robin goes to Mal for help in understanding Regina's reactions and ways to make it up to her. (DOQ or OQ)

Regina has mad PMS (just cause I think Robin figuring this out would be hilarious).

Robin and Regina discover their respective significant others are cheating with each other. They support each other through the fallout and their sons decide to make them realize they should be together.

OQ Body switch.

Robin is thrown through the time portal and meets young teenage Regina.

Robin and Regina in an orgy.

They are rival vigilantes both trying to fight the villain of the town.

Magic spell gone wrong, Robin accidentally turns himself into a fox while fiddling around with one of the vials in Regina's vault.

After Regina experiences sexual harassment, Robin reaches out to comfort her.

Robin refuses to go to the doctor.

Screenwriter/Director falling in love.

Person A keeps having strange dreams that turn out to be OQ in a past/alternate lives and they’re determined to find person B again (for extra angst; person B is already dead in this life).

American Horror Story Murder House AU

Season 3 AU where Robin/Roland/Both find themselves in Neverland and join an unlikely group brought together by their need to find a young boy.

Dark!OQ finding & taking in an abandoned baby.

An AU where there is a terror attack.

One is a killer/Criminal the other one is trying to catch him/her.

OQ friendship as one of the original married couples from Grace and Frankie.

Regina has another adoptive child when Henry brings Emma to Storybrooke.

Why did Robins tattoo match the lion emblems in Camelot? Former knight? Rightful king?

Missing Year and it's Roland's birthday.

The Good Place AU

“I went to the museum to get some inspiration for my art and then I saw you staring at one of the paintings in awe but now you just noticed me drawing you and this is awkward AU”

Regina hires Robin as her stylist. Because of a misunderstanding she thinks he’s gay.

Drunk Regina accidentally admits something really embarrassing.

Robin and Regina in a witness protection programme.

Frozen AU

Regina dies and Robin can see her ghost, together and try to find a solution to bring her back.

Prince Robin has to choose a bride via competition for his heart and Regina is one of the girls competing (or vice versa).

Robin finds Regina after searching for her.

Regina being with young Robyn.

Soldier/Nurse AU.

Their first time together after Robin has been brought back to life.

Robin or Regina are royalty and the other one works for them.

Regina goes to visit Robin’s grave for the first time.

Rival detectives trying to solve a case.

"We have to be quick"

“Would you like to share the blanket?”

Strip Poker

Alzheimer’s - one of them gets it and the other takes care of them.

Regina realises that Wish!Robin was her Robin after all and wants him back. The Evil Queen isn’t happy at all with that notion.

Robin comes back without any memories, Regina has to make him fall in love with her again.

Regina doesn’t get to go to heaven so Robin decides to stay wherever she is.

OQ meet over the death of their children.

Robin proposes to Regina on a bridge.

Regina teaching (or attempting to teach) Robin how to bake something.

Robin is secretly shrunk and kept in Roni’s jeans pocket. She doesn’t tell anyone to protect him.

Robin accidentally ingests viagra

They are both criminals trying to escape.

You’re getting chased by the police and you just jumped in my car and yelled drive, wtf man

OQ go on a double date with D!OQ

Robin comes to bring lunch to Regina but he finds her very sexually frustrated having been interrupted by the children the night before.

Regina thinks Robin is cheating on her but he is actually planning to propose.

OQ Doctor Who AU with Regina as the last of the time lords, The Queen, and Robin as the professor/archaeologist/criminal/time-traveling husband she never meets in the right order.

"This can never happen again"

Robin and Regina realise that Robin’s daughter has magic, they try to teach her how to use it.

After last call at a bar, Robin and Regina find they don’t want to say goodbye

I Dream of Jeannie AU.

You’re the bastard who keeps parking in front of my house and you just caught me drawing a dick on your window… ugh, oops.

Rivals doctors trying to win a famous prize

“Your dog likes me a thousand times better than they like your partner and sorry not sorry I love this dog”

OQ at a strip club

Bedsharing

OQ in a Star Trek or Stargate setting

“Maybe we were the mistake"

10th Kingdom AU with Regina as Virginia and Robin as Wolf (but Fox!). Bonus points for bringing Henry and Roland along for the adventure.

Regina covers Robin in tiramisu.

Fantastic 4 AU.

"I'm really angry at you but also really horny so can we press pause on this fight and fuck first?"

Before she leaves for New York, Regina knows that Roland is going to leave so she decides to take him to his father’s grave to say goodbye to both of them.

Robin or Regina almost freeze to death and the other one finds them.

Regina takes Robin Hood on an airplane for the first time.

Regina visits Marian's grave to thank her.

The first time they sleep together after Zelena.

Partners, working on a firm together and lovers/couple off-work.

Robin likes to kiss the exposed parts of skin the EQ reveals (cleavage, back etc)

Robin and Regina's daughter breaking their first curse. Regina doesn't believe her and it tears her down a bit.

“We are trapped in a bank during a robbery, please don’t get yourself killed I’m actually starting to like you” AU.

OQ steal a baby (intentionally, unintentionally, whatever.)

D!OQ/OQ's wedding day.

You’re a sex line operator and I called you because I was curious and wow you have an incredible voice AU.

Regina dealing with menopause (could be brought on early due to magic).

Regina & Robin chaperone Henry's senior prom.

They have the house to themselves but they bet they can keep quiet. They end up losing.

Robin helps Regina see light in the darkness

One of them is caught masturbating.

Regina is overwhelmed and is drowning in her demons. Robin helps her.

OQ at Henry and Cinderella’s wedding.

Canon Robin and Regina talking about Regina and Graham’s past and Robin being jealous.

OQ in Disneyland.

Robin and Henry bond.

I’m a single parent and you’re my son’s coach and holy shit I want to take you out on a date and exercise in an adult way.

Regina planning a full weekend of roughing it in the woods with Robin and the barest of essentials.

Date night.

You seem to have slept with everyone on my block except me, care to explain yourself? (When’s it my turn because I find you very attractive).

Regina gets sun poisoning and Robin has to take care of her.

Barefoot in the rain - all of their “firsts” are in the rain.

Henry worries about his mother and confides in Robin.

Hook thinks something is amiss but accidentally walks in on Regina and Robin having sex he breaks his leg fleeing the scene.

Hades’ dagger splits Robin into 2. His dark and light sides.

Regina and Robin meet speed-dating.

Regina trying to cope with pregnancy hormones.

Regina goes to NYC and sees Robin with Marian(not Zelena) and she's jealous.

Summer camp either as counsellors or as attendees.

Teacher student preferably with Robin as the student

Roland falls ill.

Can't buy me love AU.

Chocolate

“I said i loved you one more time in case it would change your mind"

Two foreign strangers meet under the cherry blossoms in Japan (bonus points if Regina is dressed in a kimono)

Regina finding out she's pregnant and she gets scared of Robin's reaction. But he's very sweet about it and gets super happy.

Jealous Regina and/or Robin.

Roland and/or Henry getting into trouble for fighting and defending Peanut's honor when some kids start badmouthing her.

Regina as a russian spy, Robin the CIA agent who’s trying to capture her.

OQ in a dystopian AU (can be based on Black Mirror episodes).

Regina finds out through her jealousy that she actually likes Robin more than just a friend.

Roland and Regina go shopping.

Regina is a goddess of love. She is responsible to bring people together and help everyone find their true love. However, her fate is to be alone forever. Then she meets Robin and while he’s destined to be with Marian he goes against powers older than life on earth itself in order to be with her.

OQ as IT geeks who work in the same company and they’re so awkward when they flirt with each other.

Peanut's first period & Robin's the only one home.

Bandit!Regina injures Robin, then nurses him back to health

An English man’s heart is stolen by a Flamenco dancer on a visit to Spain.

One of them surprises the other in the shower, it's a really good surprise

Robin finds Regina's sex-toys, and he doesn't know what they are.

Regina attends Dark OQ’s wedding.

Secrets & Lies

Robin tries to put on a sexy costume but Regina laughs at him.

Movie night with the kids.

The queen orders Robin Hood to steal something from Rumple’s castle and gives him a reward.

Regina is the dark one and Robin has the dagger.

Emma ruins everything.

Fireworks

“And for the first time in a long time, I could imagine a future where I was happy"

Regina and Robin see a musical on Broadway together.

Drinking Game with 20 Questions

Robin and Regina have a big fight.

Regina turns home to a very drunk Roland. Turns out Robin thought the ‘Strawberry Woo-Woo’ cans in the refrigerator were a children’s drink. “What kind of alcoholic drink has a picture of _____ on it?!”

Zorro AU

Regina cares for a sick Robin during the missing year.

Regina/Roni has been in a relationship with Facilier when Robin comes back.

Childhood Robin and Regina meeting in the Enchanted Forest.

They almost get caught in any type of sexual situation by any character.

Regina is an artist, Robin is life model who poses nude for each of her life drawing classes.

The Love Punch AU

Season 5 AU: Robin doesn't die and now has two parts of Regina to deal with: Queenie and Regina.

“You can’t just take my child!” “I’m taking what’s rightfully mine.”

Robin gives Regina a ring.

Regina or Robin have physical therapy twice a week but instead of working on the injury they do much more fulfilling exercises.

Regina is an AI Robot owned by a lonely widower Robin.

OQ have sex in a library

Roland climbs up a tree, Regina helps him to get down.

OQ + rimming

Roni and Robin find one another in Hyperion Heights in their cursed identities.  Then one day, the curse is broken and they wake up

Queeny and Locksley bring Robin back for Regina

A visit to the museum.

Roman Holiday AU.

Regina and Robin "just friends" play a drinking game

Robin and Regina skype while he is on an out of town business trip

USA around civil war time. Regina, wife of a confederate slave owner, is on her way further down into the South when the train gets stopped by Yankees (Robin).

Robin tells Regina that she deserves better than her current boyfriend

Robin and Regina get caught getting handsy in public

Regina tells Robin that she saw his girlfriend cheating on him

Regina and Robin attend a ball.

WWI or WWII AU: Regina falls for British solider Robin.

Non-Magical AU - Regina and Robin are on a date when they bump into Regina’s ex: Emma Swan

Regina being selfish in bed.

Roland follows an injured puppy and gets lost, Robin/Regina find them huddled together for warmth.

“You are my future.” “But I’m not sure you’re mine.”

Anastasia AU

“How did my parents meet? Well, my dad was in jail, and called the wrong number accidentally, who happened to be my mom, and he didn’t wanna waste his call so he told her not to hang up. Boom. They’re 24 years married.”

Regina is an assassin hired to kill Robin, but when she realizes he is a good man and has a son, she decides to protect him instead.

A Showmaster falls in love with his new trapeze artist who joined the show with her young son in order to provide a living.

Robin leaves Roland with Regina while out of town and she has to call John when something goes wrong.

Friends with benefits

Regina and Robin get set up on a blind date by their friends but neither of them showed up. Years later they get together and find out about their missed opportunity.

Robin accidentally clones himself whilst playing around with a few things in Regina’s vault. Regina has to try and put things back to normal, though not without having a little fun first.

The Notebook AU

Mulan AU: because her father is too old and weak, she joins the army as her father’s son, trying to save her country from the looming threat of (e.g. ogres)

Castle AU: She’s a detective and he’s a writer.

They meet at a gala, she’s an actress with a wonderful red dress and he’s a musician. They start talking and they fall in love looking at each other’s eyes.

Robin is the royal heir to a fortune but is disillusioned with the customs and pomp of regality so he gets into thievery ... and Cora is out on the look for a new husband for Regina after the first fell through ..... (perhaps bandit Regina and Robin)

Regina makes Robin her famous lasagne.

Roland goes to college.

Roland gets lost in a supermarket and Regina finds him and helps him find his Papa.

Marrying your best-friend eliminates the risk of divorce by 75%

Medical AU.

High School AU - Robin is a new student of one year. Marian schemes to get Robin for herself by dissuading both Regina and Robin who clearly have feelings for each other.

Robin and Regina are not dating. Then Robin accidentally walks in on Regina when she's with a woman.

Regina wearing Robin’s sweater bc she’s cold and that’s all she can find.

Regina being a headmistress and Robin being a billionaire whose son, Roland, goes to the school where Regina is the boss. Usually the nanny drops Roland off at school but one day when Regina is in charge of the arriving children so happens that Robin takes him to school.

Robin and Regina make a pact that if both of them aren’t married by 40 they marry each other. They fall out of contact for a few years but Regina gets a phone call on her 40th birthday from a familiar voice...

A reincarnation AU where one of them is forced to remember the past lives with the other person but the other person doesn’t remember their last life.

Teen OQ's first time in the backseat of a car.

Robin and Regina are both celebrities (doesn't matter in what form)  and they've been secretly dating for a while when they are asked to perform in an episode of Lip Sync Battle and Robin proposes with Bruno Mars' Marry You.

“I only date for the Netflix passwords.”

Robin and Regina bond over their puppies Roland and Henry.

Regina sneaking birth control to her teenage daughter and Robin catching her.

Robin being Regina's personal trainer, because Regina wants to work out before her wedding but we all know that wedding won't happen now that they met.

Upper east side widow: While en route to her husband’s funeral (whom she murdered) Regina gets arrested by Detective Locksley.

In the EF Regina’s hair gets too heavy for liking and she wants to cut it with scissors but Robin has a different idea (cutting it with an axe)

Jealous Regina (when they aren't even together) and she gets all possessive, angry then takes matters into her own hands so they have a get together sex.

Regina takes up archery as a new hobby and Robin is her instructor.

Roland saves a litter of kittens. Regina wants to get rid of them bc she doesn’t want pets. They win her heart over in no time and while outside she acts all indifferent, Robin catches her being all sweet with the kitties when she thinks everyone is sleeping.

Art Prompts

Regina and Robin as Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir. Famous ice dancers in love.

Anything silhouetted

Drawing/painting of all of their kisses

The Vault

Regina & Robin's twentieth wedding anniversary.

Regina's box of mementos from Robin (Can be before or after his death)

Dawn's first light on the sleeping lovers

A midnight swim beneath a waterfall

WW2 manip (Robin using the pics of Sean from Timeless)

Nightswimming

Arguing in public

OQ at the beach

masquerade ball

Royal Wedding

OQ in Game of Thrones

Art a favourite fic

Song Prompts 

(for music videos but can also be used for fic & art)

Faded - Alan Walker

Rewrite the stars - The Greatest Showman

The night we met - Lord Huron

Sorry - Halsey

So cold - Ben Cocks

Every time we touch - Cascada

Sad song - We the Kings

Because of you - Kelly Clarkson

All I ask - Adele

Hello - Adele

Little do you know - Alex & Sierra

In my veins - Andrew Belle

Just a little bit of your heart - Ariana Grande (Alesia Cara cover)

You are the reason - Calum Scott

The scientist - Coldplay

I will survive - Aretha Franklin (Leopold or Daniel as “you”, Regina as “I”, and Robin as “someone who’s lovin’ me”)

Dangerously - Charlie Puth

I need you love - Calvin Harris (Madlyn Bailey cover)

Paradise - George Ezra

Say you won't let go - James Arthur

Naked - James Arthur

The one that got away - Katy Perry

My life would suck without you - Kelly Clarkson

Angel down - Lady Gaga

Secret love song - Little Mix

You always make me smile - Kyle Andrews

Like i'm gonna lose you - Meghan Trainor

Close your eyes - Michael Buble

Dynasty - MIIA

Classic - MKTO

Latch - Sam Smith (Natalie Taylor cover)

Rich love - One Republic

Just give me a reason - P!nk

What about us - P!nk

Better place - Rachel Platten

War of hearts - Ruelle

The heart wants what it wants - Selena Gomez

To be human - Sia

Dusk till dawn - Zayn

Just a dream - Nelly

Don’t Treat Me Bad - Firehouse

Demons - Imagine Dragons

Outlaws - Alessia Cara

Somebody else - The 1975

Hurts like hell - Ruelle

Too good at goodbyes - Sam Smith

Video games by Lana Del Rey

Goodbye kiss - Kasabian

Stay with me - Sam Smith

Tetris - Madlyn Bailey

Tell me you love me - Demi Lovato

Nobody - Selena Gomez

I want crazy - Hunter Hayes

In the name of love - Martin Garriz & Bebe Rexha

Gives you Hell - The All-American Rejects

Hopeless Romantic - Billy Vera & The Beaters

My Valentine - Paul McCartney

Are You Ready - Mike & The Mechanics

Dark Horse - Katy Perry

I Won’t Give Up - Glee version

Perfect - Ed Sheeran

Into You - Ariana Grande

Gorgeous - Taylor Swift

Theme prompts for Videos:

Fanfic Trailers.

Movie trailers.

AU videos.

S7 AU Trailer.

Missing Year

OQ Family