Wow, thank you for such nice reviews! What's more, there were plenty of visitors from Poland, where I'm from, so that's another pleasant surprise.
So, here it is, I hope that you'll like my idea about the whole story;)
"Wonderland? Why would Zelena make a portal to this place?" the younger woman was quite confused about what brunette has just said.
"Because when I threw myself into that vortex, that was the first place that came into my mind and I thought how much I didn't want to go here" Regina explained casually. "My sweet sister had to know that. Which is exactly why we've got stuck in here".
"I think I still don't get it"
"Really ? Haven't you red the book?" Regina raised her eyebrow.
"I have, but..." annoyed brunette interrupted her, shoving the book into her hands. She rolled a few pages, until their eyes saw the image of a woman sitting on a throne, dressed in an scarlet gown. Her face was hidden under a bizarre mask.
"Does it make sense now?" Emma's eyes began to quickly scan the text. Her mind focused on particular words such as 'Cora...', '...exiled by her own daughter...', ' ...to the land called Wonderland', '...became The Queen Of Hearts'.
The blonde looked up from the book. "If it really was a time portal... then it means that your mother is still alive and in charge of this land..." It was more like an uncertain whisper than a shrewd observation.
"I'm glad we're finally on the same page " that remark wasn't left without acerbity. "Now to the point. Since thanks to my sister and also thanks to you, we're stuck in here, let's think over a strategy for survival".
"Thanks to me? I'm really sorry Madam Mayor if this situation doesn't fit your standards. Maybe you should have thought about it before throwing yourself into that damn vortex!" the blonde said a little too loudly than she planned, but Regina's words made her blood boil. That infuriating woman was unthinkable. Even in the most crappy situation she was able to blame Emma.
She was about to add something, but she froze in mid-sentence. Right above Regina's shoulder she saw unnaturally wide grin, hanging just like that in the air. Right after the smile the pair of big, blue eyes appeared, staring at her. The look on Emma's face made Regina turn around. Now she saw not only the grin and the eyes, but the whole cat. His fluffy fur was gleaming green, although seemingly it was gray.
"Strangers... Strangers in Wonderland" he purred, lazily turning in the air. "I'm sure that the Queen would be interested in this knowledge"
"Since when the Cheshire Cat is on the Queen's side?" Emma asked doubtfully. Regina gave her a questioning look. "What? Maybe I wasn't the most believing child, but I read books you know?" then ignoring the older woman, she turned to face the cat.
"Oh me? No, I'm quite... independent" after these words the cat suddenly disappeared, only to reappear a few meters away. "However most of the creatures, like the March hare for example, will immediately realize that you are not...local. Your clothes... well, even in Wonderland they look quite weird" he chuckled at the sight of the astonishment on their faces.
"Therefore, tell us where we can find the White Rabbit" Regina sounded impatient.
"I'd love to, but I have no idea where that timid animal is" the cat vanished again, and this time appeared just before the brunette, making her take a few steps backwards. "But I know who has" he grinned widely. Regina grimaced.
"Please don't say..."
"Caterpillar" cat's smile became even wider.
"And we're supposed to trust you?" this time it was Emma who asked the question.
"The only thing that you can rely on in Wonderland is that you can't really rely on anybody" another chuckle. "Good luck then...Strangers..." after these words the cat completely disappeared and this time didn't show up again.
"Well, that's something" Emma started.
"No, that's nothing" she did her best to sound as annoyed as possible, but all that escaped her mouth was sad whisper. "But he was right about one thing. We can't wander through Wonderland in these clothes" she waved her hand and a pile of clothes appeared on the ground in front of them.
"I thought that you can't conjure things out of nothing" Emma pointed out.
"Because you can't" Regina said casually.
"So you stole it?"
"I'd rather say borrowed" Emma wanted to add something, but concluded that in the current situation there was no point in arguing. They needed those clothes. "Now dress up" the brunette threw her a set of clothes. It was a white t-shirt and trousers with braces. It wouldn't be so bad if not for the fact that the pants were black-and-white checkered. Regina had exactly the same set, except that her shirt was black, and her trousers were black-and-red.
"There's no way I'm going to wear it"
"Yes you are" Regina's voice was so emphatic that Emma has decided to simply follow the instructions. Without thinking, she took her red jacket and tank top off and began to hesitantly look at the new garments. Suddenly the brunette find herself slightly perplexed with that view. For a few moments, her eyes seemed to be unable to look away from the blonde. But then she shook her head and began to change her outfit. What she didn't know was that Emma was well aware of being observed. What's more, she also didn't know that Emma hadn't felt like this for years. She felt...abashed.
"Great, now we look like damn Laurel and Hardy" Emma commented once they were ready.
"Believe it or not, that's exactly what we need right now. Now let's go, shall we? I want to get there before nightfall" brunette picked up a book. Short snap of fingers and the book has shrunk to such small size that Regina easily put it in her pocket. Emma thought, how is it that this book is always at hand, but she decided not to speak her thoughts out loud.
"There? But the cat didn't tell which way to go"
"Oh but he didn't have to" Regina smirked. "Look, I know that you may have lost your powers, but sometimes magic is just believing in yourself. If you can do that, you can make anything happen. Come on Swan, finding people, or magical creatures in this case, is your specialty" If Emma didn't see brunette's mouth moving, she wouldn't believe in what she's just heard. "Just focus" and so she did. She closed her eyes and tried to feel this land. At first it was nothing. But after a while she suddenly felt something. It was so clear and obvious...
"Hookah..." she whispered and because her eyes were still closed, she didn't see a small smile on Regina's face.
"Just try not to get addicted" the brunette teased as she started to move in a direction where the scent was most intense, leaving Emma with head full of questions and with hope that Regina knows the right answers.
Wow, so today is the day. Today is my 18th birthday! ^^ What surprises will life bring me from now on? Well, I hope that time will tell;3
If you want to, I think that the next chapter will appear in about five days time.