thiefwithhonor | (no subject)

The danger, it seemed, had passed. Stragglers remained after the giant bee's demise, but for the most part, they had done it. Robin could feel safe to return and assume the rest would be taken cared of by others.

Robin had been compelled to help simply because he knew there was little choice. Everyone had seen the beast making fire, and the sort of magic he found himself able to do would be an asset. In a city that they could not leave, there was no taking the people he cared for for safety. So he fought. And they won.

He had suffered a few injuries. He saw burns and blisters that dotted his arms. It was the exhaustion that truly was getting to him, a feeling deep within him that likely stemmed from how much magic he had used in his attempt to ward off what came at him and the people around him. As it turned out, the need to protect was a powerful emotion to focus on, but he still was a man not used to what he put his body through. Regardless, he did not take the help offered to him. He only wanted to return to the people he knew were waiting for him.

It was at least not a far journey from where the bulk of the fighting had been, especially so as he found he had little trouble with his magic any longer. He had not really let go of his fear until he knew he had to that day, and the difference was incredible. He certainly had no assumptions he could have the kind of control Elsa had over it, but he was starting to feel normal.

That it took fighting off a fire breathing insect whose height he would have assumed impossible until he saw it seemed...almost appropriate for this bizarre city.

Being able to use it really wasn't the victory, though. No, the victory came when he returned. He opened the door to the apartment, and for the first time was not worried if Roland would come running. And the boy did, in fact. He'd been playing on the floor of the main room, and within moments of seeing him, he was up and coming toward him.

He did not shrink away.

In fact, despite any sort of pain it caused, he scooped his son up as he always used to, injuries and pain be damned, hugging him tightly to him as he was overwhelmed with a feeling of relief. It did not take him long to see Regina approaching as well, and it was only then that Robin gently put his son down beside him.

"Everything's alright now," he said, and though he meant that the city was safe, it was a statement that rang true in general as well.

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After a moment of letting his words sink in, Regina held his gaze, thumb stroking across his wrist. "I know who I want to be," she realized, and it was the first time in a long while that the statement was true. She knew changing and being a better person had to be something she did for herself, but it was easier now with someone who cared for her.

Shifting to kiss him tenderly, Regina's free hand found the side of his face before drifting up to let her fingers glide through his hair. Humming against his lips, it was only when she pulled back that she realized something was different. "I think...Robin, I think something's changing."

Robin was glad to hear it, to see her have that moment of confidence. He certainly would help her, where he could. And as she kissed him, the last bit of the change of his appearance - his hair, and then his eyes - returned to as they used to be. It was noticeable now too, like something had slipped away inside of him as well, but it didn't register - not until she mentioned it.

"What?" he asked, gently easing away a little more to look down at his arms. The paleness was completely gone, as if he hadn't looked different at all a few moments ago. He held his hand palm upward and tried to make even the smallest puff of snow, but it didn't work. Nothing was happening any longer, not on purpose or by accident.

"...I think the magic is gone," he realized, looking up at her with a surprised expression.

Edited 2014-06-13 16:27 (UTC)

Relief flooded through her to see him look like himself again, and she ran her fingers through his hair again in wonder. "How do you feel?" she had to ask, hoping there were no after affects.

While it had been a new experience, and one she knew she had helped him through, she was glad for lives as normal as possible, for him not having to worry about what he may or may not do. It was simply bizarre though, how it had all come and gone so quickly.

For the first time in a week, Robin didn't have to feel like he was a time bomb. Even when he was in control, there as always a small concern in the back of his mind that things could get bad again.

He didn't have to constantly be chased by that fear anymore.

"I feel...normal," he replied, finding no other word to describe it. He tried one more time to conjure anything and nothing happened. It really did feel well and truly gone. "Like myself again."

Letting out a happy sound of surprise, Regina took that hand and kissed his palm, glad that the chill around him was gone. "This place has an odd sense of timing," she decided.

She had learned something important during all of this though; she had the ability to soothe him, to be there for him, and that made her feel more prideful than almost anything had in years. "I do believe we have cause for celebration," she murmured before finding his lips with her own again.

"It's a week to the day this started, isn't it?" he realized, and then suddenly he didn't much care about the details as she eased closer to him. She did tend to have that sort of effect on him.

And even in this, he had been holding himself back. Passion was as much an emotion as anything else. As much as he had tried, that need for restraint never really left him. The magic had felt as though it was a shackle around him, and it was gone now.

So he smiled against her mouth, wide and relieved, as his hand came up to curl around her neck to gently pull her closer.

He was right, it was, and yet she didn't bother to reply. She had missed this far too much, and Regina's smile matched Robin's for a moment before her hand moved to grip his arm. There was something about kissing him, something that drove every other thought from her mind, and she gave into it, into him.