Royal Blood

Epilogue

The screams of pain turned to the cries of fear before ebbing away to silence. Sweat plastered Regina's hair to her forehead and left her nightgown completely sticky. But none of the noise or sweat mattered. In her arms slept a beautiful baby girl. Her sweet button nose matched that of her brother's.

Regina placed a gentle kiss on her daughter's forehead, careful not to wake her. Tears gently streamed down the Queen's face as she thought of her late husband. How proud he would be to see his daughter now. Regina would give anything to show him how beautiful she was.

"She's beautiful." Katherine's hand sat gently on Regina's shoulder as the nurse peered down at the newest member to the royal family. "She favors you, don't you think?" Regina nodded, not able to break her line of sight to look up at the woman before her. "But you can see the resemblance to her father." Katherine moved to pull the covers of her bed up into Regina's lap. The balcony windows were open, letting the soft, morning light brighten the room.

A knock on the door pulled Regina away from her daughter's sleeping figure. Katherine slipped across the room to refuse visitors but after a bit of bickering, Katherine looked back at her queen. "It's Roland, your highness. And your sister."

Regina smiled, sitting up to receive her guests. "Let them come in." Regina watched as Roland raced into the room, disregarding the buckets of dirty water and the wad of stained sheets; struggling to climb up onto the bed.

"Careful, Roland. The baby is very fragile. We can't wake her, okay?" Zelena warned, standing near the edge of the bed to not crowd her younger sister. Katherine lifted the young boy onto the bed and watched as he crawled to lay his head on Regina's shoulder. Regina kissed Roland's head, snaking her left arm around him. A flash of black ink revealed itself from under her nightgown sleeve, a mirror of the tattoo her late husband once had. For good luck.

"Do you love your baby sister?" Regina whispered to her son, pride and joy overwhelming the Queen. Roland nodded, his small hand hovering over her. "You can touch her. Just like this." Regina placed his hand on the baby's stomach. "Give her a gentle kiss on the forehead. Just like I do at night." Roland followed, giggling when the baby gurgled.

"What's her name?" Roland asked, looking up at Regina.

She smiled as she looked over every member of her small family. "Her name is Robyn Amelia L. Mills."

***

Regina swallowed hard as she approached the large oak tree that signified the end of her journey. Taking a deep breath, Regina knelt down on the dirt, looking down at Robyn who was staring right back at her mother with bright eyes that matched her father's.

Regina smiled and looked at the tombstone before her, letting her free hand run over the smooth face after placing the two red roses at the head of the grave.

"Hi there." Regina whispered, sitting back on her heels as her fingers traced shapes in the soil. "It's been a while, but I promise it was for a good reason." Robyn gurgled and Regina laughed, looking up to the sky in an effort to hold her tears back. She couldn't speak. She couldn't think. Everything hurt.

"I wanted you to meet your daughter, Robyn Amelia." Regina pressed her lips to her daughter's forehead as a single tear escaped down the woman's cheek. "She's absolutely perfect, Robin." Regina whispered. "She looks just like you in every way imaginable. She's so beautiful and just so curious about the world already. And... and I know you said you waited to get to know Roland before naming him, but I couldn't wait. I knew Robyn was meant to be who she is from the moment I met her. I know you're with her every day. She brought you back to me in a new way I didn't think I'd experience."

Tears flowed freely down Regina's face now as she shook her head. "I promise to raise her right, Robin. I promise to tell her about you every day. I promise to love her with every fiber in my body. And I promise to do the same for our boy."

The wind whipped at Regina's body and she reached down to shelter Robyn from the harsh cold. "I miss you so much." Regina sobbed, pressing her forehead to the tombstone.

Footsteps broke Regina off from her own thoughts as she frantically wiped her eyes. "Mama?" Roland's voice was crisp as it rang out against the silence of the forest. "Mama, what're you doing?"

Regina turned to face her son and smiled, opening her arm to him. "I'm talking to papa. Would you care to join me?"

Hey guys! Thanks so much for reading Royal Blood! I hope you all loved it as much as I did. Keep a heads up for my next fanfic!