January 1st, 1800
London, England
Robin sees her in a market place in London at the turn of the nineteenth century.
It is cold outside; snow is drifting lazily from the sky to the ground and at first, Robin doesn’t even give her a second thought. But then light from a nearby lamp catches on her brunette hair, all wrapped up in a bonnet except for a few stray pieces falling in front of her face.
Robin has spent the better part of four centuries trying to distract them self from the memory of her. Robin has begun meddling with history, seeing how much of an impact they can make (they have decided that fate doesn’t exist. Mortals, and immortals, make their own choices and those choices define their lives.). Robin had planted the idea of undiscovered worlds in traveller’s minds, leading to the founding of a land far across the sea. Robin has both helped Puritans survive in that land and let others disappear off the face of the earth. Robin had whispered words of rebellion in the ears of men in the colonies, and watched as that rebellion grew into a revolution. Robin had spent years upon years in the Americas, trying to forget the ghost of a dying queen that haunts them.
Robin hasn’t spent a week back in England when they see her.
She is leaning over a table, gloved hands holding a small leather notebook as she flips through the pages. Her brow is furrowed and her gaze intense as she studies it, her lip between her teeth.
Robin's heart flutters in their chest and they take a step towards her, Robin's boots crunching against the snowy ground.
“Naila!”
A voice cuts through the winter air like a knife through flesh and the spell is broken. The girl that has haunted Robin through millennium turns and looks over her shoulder, a smile on her face. “Steve, come look!” she calls, and a man with brown hair and kind eyes walks up behind her. “It’s just like the one I have at home.”
“Well, you should buy it,” the man replies. “You’ve almost filled up the other one.” Robin watches as the other man pulls out a few coins and puts it in the vendor’s hands.
Smiling, the brunette-haired girl turns and kisses him softly and quickly before shooting the man a radiant smile.
The coldness of the winter seems to seep through the immortal’s clothing and skin, and Robin's heart seems to freeze in their chest. (Robin is a fool.) Robin watches as she laughs at something her husband whispers in her ear, her eyes lighting up with joy. (Robin is such a fool.)
Then, she turns and her eyes meet Robin, hers cheerful and blue, locking with Robin's own weary, blue ones. She freezes and a look of confusion passes over her face. Her lips part and she studies Robin, as if she’s trying to remember, to fight past the lives separating her from them.
Robin finds them self enraptured.
She takes a step towards Robin, her small feet stepping lightly on the snow-covered ground. Her husband says her name in a questioning tone and her brows furrow like they did when she was studying the notebook. She presses her lips together for a moment and Robin sees her mouth the beginning of a word: Rob…
Robin fights back their tears as they stumble away from her.
Robin stumbles into an alley and falls against the wall, their breath coming in sharp pants as they tilt their head backwards, looking up at the sky between the high buildings and letting the snow fall on their face, the cold biting against their skin.
Robin misses her.
Robin misses her so much.
But she is happy in this life. And who are they to take away that happiness?
There is no such thing as fate, Robin tells them self. We make our own choices and our choices define our lives.
Robin wishes they could believe their own words.
YOU ARE READING
...because I could not stop for death - ronance
ФанфикRobin meets her seven different times. Once when she was a child, twice on her deathbed and four times in between. Robin's immortal, they've had to watch everyone they love grow old and die. When one woman is reoccurring between life and death shoul...
