Prompt from Tumblr: AU prompt: Regina is blind and Robin is deaf. Despite this, both of them play cello in the orchestra and are stand partners. Regina makes sure Robin is playing the right notes and in return, Robin walks Regina home after practice.

I really hope you'll like it. :)

Sightless and Soundless

It's been five years since the last time Robin's been here. It's been five long and lonely years since he carried his cello out of this wonderful building after a grand Christmas performance with the orchestra for the last time.

To say that he is nervous would be an understatement. His hands are literally shaking.

To be honest, Robin doesn't really understand what he's going here. People who come here are talented, trained, wonderful musicians who hear even the slightest mistake, the tiniest detail. And he… He's a talented musician who is surrounded by eternal silence.

His friends are good at convincing, though. They persuaded him to come here again, to try again.

Robin didn't think it was worth it. He still doesn't. But he gave in, expecting to prove his friends that he's not capable of playing. Not anymore.

However, five years ago he was capable of playing, he was capable of making people cry with a simple melody. He was one of the best cellists in this orchestra, he was asked to play in all concerts, his students had won dozen awards, he was the most popular cello teacher in the whole town.

Everything turned upside down when Robin lost his hearing. He was driving home after the winter festival when a drunk driver crashed into him. He was very injured. The concussion was extremely strong. Fortunately, he managed to heal all of his wounds but doctors gave no hope that he'll ever be able to hear a sound.

Robin's life fell apart. He lost his job. He lost his passion. He lost his wife who left him claiming that she wasn't ready to deal with all of this.

All his life Robin's been a strong man. But then he gave up. Just like that. His life became colorless, all he felt was sorrow. He started drinking. A lot. He would get so drunk, he couldn't get home, would sleep on the streets for weeks until one of his friends found him.

Robin will be forever thankful to his dear friends who brought him back on his feet. They forced Robin to enter a therapy center, he joined a support group and after a few months of hard work, he was feeling a little bit better.

Today Robin is in the opera again. And he feels awful. He doesn't belong here anymore. He cannot hear what people around him are talking, he cannot hear the quiet music played by those who cannot wait for official practice to start.

He feels as if he's going to cry.

It was his life and one drunk driver took it all away in a moment.

Damn it!

From the corner of his eye, Robin catches the conductor talking, gesticulating something with a baton in his hand. People start walking to their seats and Robin sighs, follows their lead.

He sits down in the place which belonged to him five years ago and is greeted by a few fellow musicians. He smiles in response and swallows hard as people turn away from him with pity in their eyes.

He didn't come here for that.

After a few moments of chaos, everyone is finally is sitting in their places and the conductor lifts the baton in the air. Robin takes the bow with shaking fingers, his other hand's fingertips tightening on the strings.

It is going to be a disaster.

The conductor's hand moves down in a rather slow rhythm and Robin touches the strings with the bow, desperately looking from notes to the conductor and back to his fingers just in case he's stopping the strings in the wrong way.

Deep breaths, Robin reminds himself as he desperately plays the instrument, and he forces himself to stop thinking and feel instead. He can feel music, he always could and now when he's deaf, he feels things even better.

But it's been five years and he's dusty and he lost the rhythm completely now and there's a lump in his throat because he's not as good as he once was and he will never be.

Thankfully, the first part is rather short and when the conductor finishes directing with baton lifted in front of him, Robin breathes easier.

He puts the bow down immediately and closes his eyes, tries not to start hyperventilating.

He really shouldn't have come here.

When Robin opens his eyes, he finds a dark haired woman sitting beside him. He's certain she hasn't been here five years ago, he would have remembered seeing such beauty before.

The woman's eyes are dark brown and she's looking at him, but not exactly, her eyes don't meet his. She's saying something, her face twisted in a smirk.

Robin bets her voice is like an angel's.

She keeps talking, this beautiful stranger, and he tries to read from her plump red lips but they're so tempting and for a moment he wonders what it would be like to kiss her.

"I bet you have a voice of an angel," Robin says and the woman stops immediately, her eyes widening. She turns to the side and now they're almost looking at each other but her gaze is still not quite direct.

With a sinking feeling Robin realizes that she's blind.

Robin catches her lips moving, she's saying something and her smirk has now turned into a confused expression which makes her look even more beautiful.

"I'm deaf," Robin offers.

Her mouth opens in surprise and she's saying something again, it looks like she's apologizing and Robin would give his whole life up if he was able to hear her wonderful voice.

The conductor is moving, the baton back in his hand, motioning to the musicians to prepare for another part.

"We're starting the second part," he tells the mysterious woman in case she didn't hear the conductor and takes the bow, shifts the cello a bit until he's comfortable.

The second part is even worse than the first one. Robin cannot feel the rhythm, not at all. He tries to beat one with his leg but is failing completely because the conductor's hands are in completely different position than his beaten rhythm and Robin feels like giving up.

Unexpectedly Robin feels a warm, soft hand on his thigh, the hand beating a rhythm that is so similar to the one he can't quite catch and he turns to look to the side and there's the same stunning woman beating a rhythm for him, her own bow and cello put to the side.

Robin inhales sharply and she says something. He thinks that she's encouraging him, and he murmurs a quiet thank you before he drags the bow against the strings again.

This time he seems to catch the beat and he plays in tact with others and the woman's hand is insistent against his thigh, not faltering up for a moment.

It feels as if Robin of Locksley has been reborn.

The practice is over too quickly and when Robin turns around to thank the mysterious woman again for helping him, she's already gone. Her cello is left there and so is her bow. Robin sighs, feeling horrible for not getting a chance to thank her one more time.

When Robin enters the hallway to take his coat, he sees her. The woman is standing there, with her head in her hands, murmuring something.

"Is everything alright, milady?" Robin asks as he approaches her.

She jumps a little, obviously hasn't expected someone to talk to her and lifts her head from her hands as if to look at the person. She sighs and starts to say something but then remembers that he cannot hear her and instead she pulls out her phone from her pocket and types.

When she hands him the phone, their hands touch for a brief moment making Robin's heart beat just a bit faster. It's unbelievable to feel like this with a person you've just met.

There are many mistakes in the message (after all she cannot see ) but he stills understands that her guide is not here and she has to wait a few hours for someone to come and take her home.

"Let me help you," Robin offers without hesitation. "Let me take you home."

She seems taken aback by his offer for she opens her mouth and starts saying something all the while shaking her head.

She stops in the middle of her speech, though, and her face turns into apologetic grimace as she closes her eyes.

"It's alright," Robin assures her. "If you want me to get you home, nod your head." He asks, in hopes that this type of communication will suit their situation better than her speaking and then apologizing.

The woman stands still for a moment and Robin takes that moment to simply look at her.

She's stunning. In every way.

Her face is almost bare, only her eyelashes are painted and her lips, they're the color of blood. He notices a small scar over her lip and another one at her temple, probably from a surgery. For a strange reason these scars makes her look even prettier.

Robin blinks his eyes then, and looks away. He shouldn't stare at her like that.

When he looks at her again, though, she's nodding her head and Robin grins.

"Alright, milady," he smiles, "Now you have to tell me where you live."

She pulls out her phone again and types the address.

Robin knows where she lives and he tells her so, returning her phone to her. They dress up then, put on their coats and scarfs and hats and Robin puts his cello case on his shoulder before taking the woman's hand in his.

Her hand is still warm and soft and wonderful, and all he can think about is kissing it. But he doesn't do it, instead he's holding it tightly, squeezing it with every step they take.

Their walk is short, she lives only a few minutes away from the opera theatre but for somewhat reason their journey still feels magical. The whole town is decorated in Christmas lights, it is surrounded by the smell of gingerbread cookies and Robin is certain that the Christmas music is playing in the street.

He holds the woman's hand tighter and thinks that he hasn't felt this good since he fell into eternal silence.

They reach her apartment far too quickly and when he releases her hand and tells her that they've come, the smile falls from her face and it looks as though she's sad that they have to part.

And Robin feels the same.

"Do you want me to help you climb the stairs?" he asks, looking for a reason to stay with her just for a little while longer.

She laughs, and Robin would die to hear that sound, and says something again but all Robin manages to understand while reading from her lips is that she doesn't need his help.

"Alright, then," Robin says, clearing his throat. He takes her hand in his again, and gives it one last squeeze. "Merry Christmas, milady."

Merry Christmas, the woman says back but he doesn't hear that, he just reads. Thank you, she adds and slowly she turns around, grabs the railway and starts climbing up the stairs.

When the beautiful stranger disappears from his view, Robin sighs in contentment.

It's been five years since the last time he felt like this. It's been five years since a hand as soft as hers has touched him. It's been five years since his heart was beating as rapidly as it is now.

This mysterious woman whose name he doesn't even know is the best thing that happened to him.

Perhaps they will never meet again but he's sure as hell going to think about her. A lot. He will always remember and imagine her stunning face and that wonderful voice he didn't get a chance to hear.

With that thought he turns around and walks to his own home.