OutlawQueen One Shots

When two becomes three

Prompt - Zelena's magic is the only thing that could return the life to Regina's stillborn baby.

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They never saw her smile or even the colour of her eyes. They never heard her childlike laughter and never heard her cries. The wallowing cries in the middle of the night, the ones all parents pray not to hear, they longed for them. Their little girl never got to feel the kisses which were placed on her cheeks, on her tiny nose and on her fragile hands and feet. She never got the chance to laugh because of the tickles underneath her chin or on her small belly. She did not get to hear the "I love you's" her parents kept on repeating. When Robin held her for the first time, he danced with her. It was the first and the last father-daughter dance they would ever get to experience. She was wrapped up in a cotton blanket, one which was meant to keep her warm on the way home, and stayed unmoving while Robin swayed gently with her in his arms. Regina carried their daughter for her entire life, but their love for the tiny girl would last longer than their own lives.

Regina would never forget the moment she was told the baby's heart stopped beating. Even though her own broke in that second, in strangely kept on beating in her chest. It started when Regina told Zelena that she had not felt the baby moving that day. She only had days until she was meant to bring the baby into the world, and simply blamed it on the lack of space the child had in there. It was her sister who insisted on going to the hospital.
"I cannot seem to find the heartbeat." was all Regina heard before she went numb. She could see the nurses and doctors swarming around her, but could not bring herself to focus on either one of them. There were so many sounds around her; the doctor's desperate yet controlled orders about what should be done, the oh so irritating beeping coming from various machines and the pitying "Regina..." coming from her sister. She heard them all as muffled as if she was underwater, and they were far, far away from her.

At some point, Robin appeared next to her. Zelena had probably called him, but Regina could not acknowledge his presence. If they had to choose one word to describe that day, it would have been "lonely". They were supposed to welcome their baby girl with their entire family waiting anxiously for news outside the delivery room. Robin was supposed to panic and maybe even pass out at the sight of Regina giving birth to their child, while she crushed his hands and swore her eternal hatred upon him. They were supposed to cradle their newborn and count her fingers - make sure they were all there, and they would have been, of course, she was meant to be perfect. So many things were supposed to happen that day, and yet none of them would ever become reality.

The way Robin would have insisted on wheeling Regina in a chair until they reached the car would stay a dream. How they would have entered the nursery with a newborn in their arms and spend hours watching their child breathe would now be something they could only experience in their dreams. They would never get to see her silken lashes flutter, revealing the chocolate eyes she probably got from her mother, the same ones which would never hold their gaze. The grasp of her small hands would never wrap around their fingers, and her arms would never reach for their embrace. They would never hear the music of her voice nor would they fill their lungs with that beloved baby scent. They dreamed of their tiny little one, the one who would always be with them. They waited and longed for her to come join their family, and yet she left so soon.

Their daughter was born sleeping.

They made Regina go through with it. The event which was supposed to be the happiest day of her life turned to every parent's worst nightmare. Neither Robin, nor Regina understood what was supposed to happen when the doctors injected her with some sort of medicine meant to start the contractions and push the baby out of her body. She expected crying, a lot of crying, but nothing came until she saw the small body being removed from her own. She endured all the pain, the pain which mothers go through with the thought that at the end, they would get to hold a happy baby in their arms. She would not get that.

Breathing had never felt so difficult for Robin. One of his arms was wrapped around Regina's back, while the other was knitted in his own hair, pulling hard enough to pluck it out and digging his nails deep into the scalp. The sound of a single heart monitor, Regina's, was a burden which made his shoulders slump and his stomach turn violently.
Regina could only blame herself. It was her who was responsible for their daughter's safety before she was born. Robin could only blame himself. He didn't know how, but he felt it was his fault for not taking better care of his wife and daughter.

Regina and Robin did not talk much that day, but whenever they did, it was accompanied by heartbreaking sobs, whimpers as pained as if they had swallowed broken glass and pleads for their daughter to come back to them. Robin expected her to scream and curse everyone inside that hospital while going through the contractions, but Regina barely made any sound. Apart from the sharp intakes of breath and teeth gritting caused by the violent shaking her body went through, she only clutched Robin's hand tighter and let go of more tears.

When their daughter was born, the nurses did not swaddle her as they normally do with newborns. They simply placed her on Regina's chest, allowing them to dwell in the fading warmth of their daughter's small body. Regina's smile matched the one she had when she told Robin she was pregnant, all those months ago, and it broke his heart even further. She was born silent. Perfect, beautiful and loved, but silent. She was never touched by cold, by fear or loneliness and always knew what love was. They were supposed to have a baby, but got an angel instead. Because of her, they now believed in angels. They may have only held her in their arms for moments, but she would always be a part of their heart.

She watched them from the corner of their room. Zelena had been there during the entire pregnancy, helping her sister with everything that she could. She was there when the two lines appeared on the pregnancy test, and then encouraged Regina to talk to Robin as soon as possible. She talked her sister through her irrational fear of doctors and made her schedule an appointment. She was the first one Robin and Regina showed the pictures of the ultrasounds to. Zelena was there when they found out they were having a baby girl, and immediately after planned a huge party for the expectant mother and child. She held the old parchment in her hands and wondered each night about what those words meant. They were messily scribbled on the scroll and Zelena was sure it was a spell or even something much more powerful. She had it since she was little, it was the only thing she could not seem to lose, even when she purposely tried to get rid of it. Now, she understood its meaning. The words were waiting for this moment to come, and for her to be next to the grieving parents.

"And thee who shall be born from the dark soul turned to light upon the meeting of her soulmate, will hold the greatest power. Her life, nevertheless, will be decided upon the fate of the magic which is most powerful during the day she is born, one that cannot belong to any of her parents."

The very thing Zelena had worked for her entire life, making her magic more powerful, could now save the life of her niece. She did not think about it twice, and by the time she managed to open her eyes again, a bright light began to travel from her body to the baby's.
Robin and Regina's distress was too pronounced for them to notice the small wiggle coming from her arms. They did not see the way the child took her first breath and slowly opened her eyes. By the time Zelena, now deprived of all of her magic, made the parents look at their newborn, the colour had returned to her skin, making her look like a normal, healthy baby. She was meant to be there, next to her parents, even though the price could not be paid by them.

It was a mix of feelings - relief, gratitude and uncertainty - that could be sensed in their nervous laughter. Regina and Robin could only smile through their tears, wiping them furiously so they would not miss a second of their daughter's first moments.
"What did you do?" Regina managed to ask Zelena, sensing the way her magic still lingered in the air.
"I believe I finally found the purpose of my magic," the redhead answered.

For all the things their arms have cradled, she was by far the most precious. They looked at her as if they saw the sun for the first time. Meeting her was the only blind date where both of them were sure they were going to meet the love of their lives.
It took magic - powerful magic - and sacrifice to keep her here, but Zelena had never felt so at peace with anything she had ever done before. The most important thing her magic could do was save her sister's daughter, and she finally realised it.