Once Upon a Time Chosen

She wanted to be chosen.

That's what Marian had said when Regina had spoken of wedding vows and told her that her husband would honor his obligation. She didn't want to be an obligation. She would rather not be with him at all than have him by her side while his heart was elsewhere. So when he had told her that he loved Regina, she had smiled sadly and released him from his vows. But that night, alone in her tent at the Merry Men's camp, she cried herself to sleep.

She wanted to be chosen, but that didn't make it hurt any less when she wasn't.

She stayed with the Merry Men at their camp in the woods. She no longer shared a tent with Robin, but she saw him from time to time. Of course she did. He was still the leader of the Merry Men, and she had no intention of leaving the people she felt most at home with for a town that seemed bizarre and frightening to her.

The Merry Men tried to console her, but there was little they could do. There was no way to turn back time. The world had moved on, and so had he. She knew sooner or later, she would have to come to terms with that, and do the same herself.

* * *

Mulan hadn't given herself the chance to be chosen. How could she? The woman she loved was pregnant and married. Now she was the mother of a beautiful baby boy, named for his father. Aurora had glowed with joy when she asked Mulan to be the child's godmother, and of course, Mulan couldn't deny Aurora anything. Even though it hurt to even be around them, so happy together.

She couldn't stand in the way of True Love. It would be dishonorable to try.

So she stayed away as much as she could, surrounding herself by the Merry Men and trying to forget her feelings for the Princess. When Robin chose the Queen over his newly returned wife, she lay awake that night, listening to the sobs coming from the tent next to hers. Her heart went out to Marian. She knew how it felt to not be chosen.

* * *

Marian was crying. Again. She had willingly stepped aside for Robin to be with Regina, and she didn't regret that. But he was at the Queen's mansion tonight, and she couldn't sleep imagining the two of them in each other's arms. His absence hung over her, reminding her of what she had lost. She hated the looks of pity she got from the Merry Men when they heard her crying, so she wandered out into the woods and sat on a rotting stump in the dim light of the moon, her face buried in her hands.

She barely heard the footsteps, but she looked up to see a figure standing over her, a woman dressed in the clothes of this world – pants and a black leather jacket – and armed with a sword. Marian recognized her at once as the only other woman among the Merry Men, a new recruit who had joined them after Marian's "death".

"Mulan?" she said. "What are you doing here?"

"I heard you leave the camp," the other woman said, looking down at her with concern. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Marian replied, fully aware that it was obvious she wasn't fine.

"It's okay to be upset, you know," said Mulan, sitting down beside her. "If you need to talk to someone …"

How could she? How could anyone possibly understand what it felt like to nearly die and then find herself in a strange future world where her husband had fallen in love with the woman who almost killed her, only to have that woman save her life multiple times? Her skepticism must have shown on her face, because Mulan smiled.

"I might understand better than you expect," she said. "I've been unlucky in love, too."

"You have?" Marian asked in surprise.

"Yes. Not in the same way as you, but the person I love …" Mulan hesitated. "She loves someone else. I couldn't stand in their way."

"She?" Marian asked with surprise.

"Princess Aurora. I vowed to Prince Philip to protect her, and somewhere along the way, I fell in love with her."

"Do you hate him?" Marian asked. "Philip, I mean?"

Mulan shook her head.

"Of course not. Philip is a dear friend, and I only wish him happiness. I just wish …"

"I know."

"And you?" Mulan asked. "Do you hate Queen Regina?"

Marian laughed through her tears.

"I don't know how I feel about Regina," she said. "She tried to kill me and hurt so many people – years ago, maybe, but it feels like yesterday to me. But she has a son and a family who believe she's changed, and she saved my life when she could have let me die. My husband … former husband loves her. It would be easier to hate her, but … hate is like a poison. The only thing it does is destroy, and I don't want that. I don't think I'll ever like her, but I'm trying to forgive her."

Mulan nodded and took her hand.

"You're a good person, Marian," she said. "You deserve love, and I think someday you'll find it again. If you need anything …"

"Thank you."

* * *

The next night, the two women sat side by side and chatted over dinner. Mulan spoke of disguising herself as a man to fight in the Emperor's army, and Marian talked about her adventures with the Merry Men, helping out with their missions and outwitting corrupt royals.

"It's not easy for women in our land to decide their own fate," Marian observed.

"No, it's not," Mulan replied. "That's why we have to help each other."

* * *

One day, they went into town together and ate at Granny's, marveling over the strange new foods, the bright fluorescent lights, and the horseless carriages zooming past outside. This realm was still strange and new, but now that the initial shock was over, Marian found herself overwhelmed with curiosity, as eager to discover Storybrooke as she once had been to explore the forests of Sherwood.

When Aurora came in, an infant in her arms and a handsome Prince at her side, they left and wandered to the library. The woman behind the counter grinned when she saw them.

"Mulan!" she cried out. "It's been so long! I didn't know you were in Storybrooke!"

"I haven't been for long," Mulan replied. "Just since the latest curse. It's such a strange place."

The other woman nodded. "I thought so, too, at first. You'll get used to it, though."

After a moment, she seemed to notice Marian. "I don't think we've met before," she said. "My name is Belle."

Belle. The name seemed familiar, but it took her a moment to realize where she had heard it before.

"You helped Robin once, right? When he was captured by the Dark One? He told me about you."

Talking about Robin was painful, and her hurt must have shown on her face, because Belle smiled sympathetically and said she was sorry. Marian shook her head.

"There's nothing to be sorry about. I didn't want him to stay with me unless he chose to, and he … well, he didn't."

Marian thought she saw tears in Belle's eyes and remembered what they said about her and the Dark One – how they had been married, and how they had fallen apart.

"Nothing hurts more than losing the person you love," said Belle softly.

* * *

When had Marian grown so beautiful? When had the curve of her smile and the shine of the sunlight on her hair started making Mulan's heart flutter? Why could the warrior not take her eyes off the beautiful outlaw, not when she drew her bow and arrow with grace and power, not when she ran through the woods with her hair flying free behind her, not the first time she dressed in clothes from this land, jeans and a long-sleeved tee-shirt with a knit scarf slung loosely around her neck?

When Aurora came with baby Phil, no longer a newborn and beginning to crawl around on his own and blabber nonsense words, she smiled knowingly as she watched Mulan watch Marian, who was absentmindedly braiding flowers into her hair and talking to Little John.

"You love her," she said softly.

"What? No," Mulan protested.

Aurora tilted her head. "Remember what I told you when we first met? I know love when I see it. You love her."

"I …"

Aurora pulled her into a hug.

"I'm happy for you. I know it can't have been easy, loving Philip – I know that's why you left. But I'm glad that your choice led you to a love of your own. So go! Tell her how you feel!"

_Loving Philip_, Mulan thought, almost laughing. _You really have no idea._

But Aurora's words stayed with her. She couldn't let another chance for happiness slip away, not now that she had found someone who might actually choose her.

* * *

Marian watched Mulan as the beautiful warrior woman sat with Aurora and chatted. She was across the clearing, sitting beside Little John, too far away to hear their words, but she felt something almost akin to jealousy stabbing at her. But that was ridiculous. Why would she envy the Princess? If she were lucky enough to be loved by Mulan … no. It wasn't as if Marian's thoughts were now haunted not by a blue-eyed outlaw but by a warrior who fought with the strength of a dragon and the grace of a bird in flight. That was ridiculous.

"You like her?" Little John asked softly as she watched Mulan hug Aurora.

Marian turned and looked at him in surprise. The flower that she had been braiding into her hair fell from her fingers to the ground.

"Who?"

"I think you know who," he said.

"I shouldn't …"

"Why not?" he asked. "Because she's a woman?"

Marian shook her head.

"No, of course not. That's not … that doesn't matter to me. But …"

"Oh. I see. Because of Robin."

Marian shrugged and nodded. "I know he's moved on, but I can't help but feel like …"

"Marian, you don't owe him anything. He moved on. He chose someone else. You're free to do the same, and I think he would want you to."

She glanced back over at Mulan, who to her surprise was walking towards her. Her usually powerful walk was slow and almost hesitant. She stopped beside Marian.

"Can we talk? Privately?"

"Of course," said Marian, rising.

* * *

It was amazing how quickly a fierce warrior could become a fearful mess at the thought of confessing her love. Emotions had never been easy for Mulan. Though she knew what she felt for Marian was real and true, she found she had no idea how to express it. She had always been one to let her feelings go unspoken and be ignored, but this time was different. She wasn't standing in the way of True Love; she had finally found a chance for her own happy ending after so much time spent fighting to help other people find theirs. She owed it to herself, and to Marian as well, to make her feelings known.

The two women sat side-by-side in the forest just outside the Merry Men's camp. Mulan's hands trembled, but she fought to keep them steady. Marian looked lovelier than ever with flowers woven into her hair and a smile that lit up her face, so different from the sobbing woman Mulan had comforted what felt like a lifetime ago.

She couldn't speak.

She had to.

"Marian, I …" Mulan hesitated, gathering her courage. "There's something I need to tell you."

The other woman looked at her expectantly, and Mulan's stomach fluttered with anticipation, but when she tried to speak, her voice stuck in her throat. Marian smiled.

"Go on," she said, placing a slender hand on Mulan's knee. "You know you can tell me anything."

"I think I might be in love with you."

The words hung in the air, and she braced herself for rejection. She didn't even know if Marian was attracted to women, much less whether she saw Mulan as anything but a friend. And it was so soon after losing her husband.

But Marian smiled and planted a tender kiss on Mulan's lips.

"I think I might be, too," she said as Mulan sat there, paralyzed by shock.

"Is this … right?" she stammered. "Can we ... what if …"

"I know," Marian replied. "It's complicated, for both of us. We'll never be that perfect fairytale couple. But maybe happy endings aren't always what we expect. I love you, we have a chance to be happy together, and I think we should take it. If that's what you want."

Mulan nodded.

"I choose you, Marian," she said, leaning in for another kiss.


End file.

Once Upon a Time, Hurt-Comfort, Romance