The Most Resilient Heart.

His Resilience.

He stared. He stared at the dark red pieces of her heart, listening to the faint beat. He could feel his own heart jump to his throat. He had done this. He had broken her heart. Literally.

He felt like saying something, like comforting her but no words left his mouth and not a muscle of his moved. There were no words for this.

She just stood there, small tears falling down her face. She cried beautifully. If you've ever cried beautifully, you would know. She cried beautifully, with tears that just fell. Tears that fell without her trying, without thought. She still had her back to him but she could see him the same. Behind her tears, he was there, staring into the box. Staring with those beautiful blue eyes that captured her; that paralysed her. 

Regina could have been the only person, thoughout all parallel universes, that could still feel without her heart. She could still feel love, grief, pain... and now, she could feel everything. Everything at the same time.

Seeing him through her tears was almost a comfort. The image reminded her of his strong hands that would hold her gently, the light beard that would move with his lips when he smiled and most of all, she could remember his resilience. How could such a good man fall for her? How could a man as loved as him, persist in his love for her, despite all her mistakes?

The pieces in the box seemed to call to him. They seemed to be pulling him closer towards them. Inclined, his hands reached into the box and with as delicate touch as he could manage, he scooped the pieces into his palms. As they sat there, a jolt ran through his body; a jolt that could have only been described as magic. It made him smile. Suddenly, something seemed to tell him that everything would be alright. It was the sort of feeling that follows true-love. The sort of feeling that makes you feel invincible. 

He looked down into his palms and his eyes widened at the glowing pieces that started to reform. They first rose into the air, and then began to put themselves back together. 

Regina could feel it. Or at least, she could feel something. She looked down to her chest with the same confusion she would use everytime her heart would burst with pain. Her chest was meant to be empty, so why did it suddenly feel full? She could hear the beat of her heart through her ears, as if it was still in her chest. It was getting stronger by the second but still, no smile reached her face. She was confused, but she could still hear that terrible part of her telling her that she couldn't be happy; that she was a villain.

Robin smiled at the strong heart that beat in his hands and his smile grew as he noticed a large part of it changing colour. He saw the dark red brighten; lighten, you could say. So he stood up and turned to face the woman standing in the middle of the forest, still with that same poise and elegance. She still didn't seem out of place though. It looked as though she was a lady born to live in the forest. Seeing her there, it suddenly dawned on Robin all the things that he could have had. He could have had her all those years ago. He could have run after her that night, in the pub.* She was made to be with him, she had told him that and now he didn't believe in anything more.

He walked towards her slowly, her beating heart between his fingers.

"Regina," His tone was confident and soft.

Regina could feel her breaths intensify just hearing his voice again.

"Do you know what defines a person as a villain?" 

She knew it was rhetorical, so she continued to stand there, paralysed by the sounds that told her he was getting closer.

"Everyone knows that evil isn't born... that evil is made."

She stopped an aroused gasp leaving her lips at her infamous words leaving his mouth. He was standing right behind her now causing her eyes to flutter closed. She could feel his body pressed up against hers, contradicting the cool forest breeze. 

"But when someone becomes evil, they're only evil if the people who love them believe they are."His mouth by her neck, she could feel his light breaths with every word and it sent shivers down her spine, almost making her give in at the knees.

He then places a light kiss on her shoulder that was bare from another of her provocative dresses.

"And Regina?" He places a deeper kiss into her neck.

Her head tilts with the weakness he had founded in her and she quickly turns around, her head millimetres away from his. There were his light blue eyes again burning into her dark ones.

His own breaths quicken at her unexpected move and her dark, mystifying eyes staring into his. But his confidence doesn't dissipate. Staring at her dark red lips, he whispers against them: "I don't think you're evil."

Regina gasps uncontrollably as she feels her heart pushed into her chest. Looking down she caught a small glipse of the whole, strongly beating, purely red heart being pushed into her chest before Robin captured her lips with his.

Her hands reached for his cheeks as she kissed him back intensely, with his voice ringing through her ears.

They're only evil if the people who love them think they're evil.

And Regina? I don't think you're evil.

Wow. I absolutely love writing this. ANyway, there was an asterix (*) in the story... it's just that it relates to another OutlawQueen fanfic I wrote. You don't have to read it all because I understand it's really long, just if you want to understand what Robin 'says' or 'thinks' in this one, you can read one of the last things he says in the other one! It's called 'I Saw You Too' and it's the only other OutlawQueen fanfic I've written anyway... thanks for reading! It means a lot!!! <3

... Somewhere only we know...

CC;)