Here we go! Last one, for sure this time!

Thank you for coming on this quick Christmasy ride with me! I look forward to your thoughts and comments on the story!

Hope everyone's had an amazing holiday!

The wedding is gorgeous.

A beautiful Christmas Eve ceremony inside a winter wonderland, all in pristine white decor with silver and crystal accents. The centerpieces are large topiary bouquets of white roses, housed in the center of clear, tall crystal candelabra, and flanked on either side of the table by smaller arrangements, also of white roses. The chair and tablecloths are white, with a rose applique pattern etched onto them to add texture, and there are white LED twinkle lights hanging from the smooth black ceiling, emitting a blue-ish glow that reflects on all the white in the room, casting the entire venue into a cool luminescence that adds to the ambiance, makes you feel like you've entered some magical frozen paradise, the kind you only read about in fairytales. It's exactly what Mary Margaret wanted.

And speaking of the bride, there she is with her groom at the center of it all, both gliding slowly across the black and white checkerboard dance floor, holding each other and rocking lazily back and forth to a slow, instrumental version of The Christmas Song.

The dress fits Mary (and this wedding) perfectly, turned from the sea of taffeta it once was to a strapless, snow white work of art with flowers embroidered into the top, mixing seamlessly with the flowers on the side of her sash, giving way to the big, fluffy skirt. She looks like a princess, and Regina smiles as she watches David land a loving kiss on his new wife's knuckles.

Perfect wedding.

And yet, she can't bring herself to enjoy it, smooths the black fabric of her figure-hugging dress, fidgets with her hair, bites into a cupcake from the dessert table, all distraction tactics, something for her to do with her hands as she stares wistfully at the happy couple, wishing, longing for a certain handsome writer with a British accent to show up and sweep her off her feet with his lovely kisses and gentle touch.

She fell for Robin Locksley. She fell hard. And no amount of holiday cheer or chips and guac is going to help at this point.

She's cursing her bad decisions again when a throat clears behind her, and she turns, startled, to find Robin standing there, dressed up in a charcoal colored suit, blue-and-white plaid shirt, and navy tie, looking at her with a sheepish grin.

"Wha- How did you know I would be here?" is the first thing she thinks to ask, and he chuckles at her shock, pulls a folded wedding invite from his jacket pocket.

"Got this in the mail a week ago, along with a note saying I should show up if I knew what was good for me, signed by 'Mary Margaret's Dress'."

Regina gasps, amused.

"She didn't," she says, tilting her head to the side.

"She did," he insists, and they laugh amiably, looking to Mary and David as they continue to dance, Mary throwing a wink in Regina's direction when she sees Robin standing next to her.

"I've to admit," Robin adds, bringing her attention back to him, "it looks much better than the last time I saw it."

"Ripped and covered in snow?"

"Mhmm, when you made up that ridiculous runaway bride excuse."

He doesn't mean it as a slight, she can tell, is just trying to make light of the situation so that they can try and get past it, but still, an awkward silence follows, Regina looking anxiously around, not knowing what to say.

"I read the contract... and your friend's email. She has a habit of throwing things out the window?" he asks, and Regina smirks, nods her head, and he tells her that it's a relief, then, that Elle liked his story so much.

"What did your aunt say?" she asks then, curious as to Shirley's reaction.

"She was ecstatic. Told me if this was my dream, then I should go after it."

Regina beams at him, glad that the situation has been cleared up, and that he can now take the path he wants to take, not the one that was chosen for him. She's about to say something to that effect, to congratulate him on finally being free of the pressures of his family legacy, but he speaks before she can.

"She told me the same about going after you," he says, nervous.

Oh?

"And what did you say?" she whispers the question, afraid of the answer he might give her.

"I told her there was no point, that even though you apologized and warned us about Zelena, I was still just a story to you... and then she pointed out one very important detail."

"What's that?" she asks, breathless because he's leaning closer, fingers tentatively trailing down her cheek as his eyes take her in.

"She said, if I was just a story, you would've written it, and you didn't."

"I didn't," she confirms dumbly, not knowing what else to say.

"Right," he responds, and his tone is calm, but his body is restless, his stance apprehensive, as if he's not sure what his next move should be.

"Robin," she decides to ask, unable to handle the anticipation, "why are you here?"

"Because," he starts, gathering his courage in one deep breath before he confesses, "I think I'm falling madly in love with you, Regina Mills, and I wanted to know if you felt the same way."

It's the most beautiful words she's ever heard, pouring out of him with so much soul and warmth that she can't help herself, jumps in his arms and buries her face in the crook of his neck, reveling in having him close again.

"I do," she replies without hesitation, "I do feel the same."

He moves back a little, just enough so that their foreheads touch, his eyes closed as he breathes deeply, relaxing noticeably when she tilts her head up and lands an impromptu kiss on the tip of his nose, his hand moving to hold her face, fingers tangling in her hair as his thumb rubs over her cheek. Her own hand wraps around his wrist, her eyes lost to the sight of his lips, his tongue when it peeks out to wet them, gearing up for the perfect moment she knows they're about to share.

"I missed you," she admits, breathing the words against his lips.

"I missed you, too," Robin confesses easily, "so much."

He trails off, and it's clear that they're done talking, his mouth finding hers in a languid, wonderful dance that radiates heat from her lips to the very tips of her toes, and she's so happy she laughs into the kiss, prompting a chuckle from him as well. They take a moment to look at each other, smiling like fools, and then sink back into it, his lips soft and sweet against hers, and a single thought flits through Regina's mind as she surrenders to his touch and this unbelievable feeling that binds them together.

She has never had a more magical Christmas.