A/N There will be a full explanation for this shortly!
"Come on Ana. Let's go and see where our Mom's used to live!" Sofia almost ran up the front steps and pushed the front door open. It was so exciting being in this land and they had always been so curious about their mothers' home. They couldn't imagine not living in a palace. Immediately, the girls were awed at the strange hallway with modern wall coverings. Ana bound over to inspect the photos that were hanging on the walls.
"These paintings are so tiny! Do you think Mami was too poor to have large pictures in this realm?" She asked her sister.
"Ana, don't you remember what Mama said about this world's paintings? They are photographs and they are produced by a magic box." Sofia quipped and inspected the photos herself. "Look! Here are our mother's and this must be Roland and Henry!" She squealed in delight looking at the faces of her older brothers.
The girls wandered through the house in amazement. There were so many items which Emma had referenced over the years, some they had seen before as magical copies but most were alien to them. Ana picked up a remote control and pushed a button. Suddenly the fireplace roared into action and the girls gasped then laughed. Sofia sat on the couch, which was identical to theirs back in the enchanted forest, and picked up a bridal magazine which Regina must have left there so many years ago. She opened it and began examining all the images in astonishment. "Goodness Ana! This book has hardly any stories in it at all, only pictures and ideas for weddings."
The girls giggled at the images of such strange clothing and food.
Next, they went into the kitchen. Everything was bright and clean and Ana pulled open drawers and cupboards to inspect the contents. "What do you suppose this is for?" She asked holding up a box of Fruit Loops. Sofia looked over and shrugged. She had opened the refrigerator and was hit by the coldness.
"An ice box! Look, there is still some food inside although it appears to have spoilt!" Sofia pinched her nose and closed the door. This really was a strange world.
The girls crept up the stairs and inspected the bedrooms. It was quite similar to what they had back home but the ensuite in Regina's room was breathtaking. They had baths back home but had never seen a shower before. Thankfully Emma had modernised the palace and they recognised the toilet at least.
They went into the room across the hall and discovered the nursery. "Do you think this room was meant for us?" Sofia asked, taking in the girly decor, teddy bears and baby furniture. Ana smiled. "I think so Sofia."
The last room they entered was Henry's. They girls had sensed that there was a presense in the room and had left it until last, a little scared of who might be sleeping in there. They opened the door and saw that Zelena, baby Robin, Roland and Henry were all asleep in there together. Zelena was in a rocking chair with the baby in her arms. Roland was tucked under the covers peacefully and Henry was lying next to him. They must have known the enchantment was close and opted to stay together.
Ana crept over to her big brother. She would have recognised him even if she hadn't seen a photo downstairs. The familiar magic that resonated from him was what had drawn the girls here in the first place. She went to wave her hands over him but Sofia stopped her.
"What if we can't put him back to sleep, Ana? What if something bad happens?" She was worried because their sleeping spells weren't as strong as anything like this. There was no guarantee they were doing the right thing and their Mami wasn't there to help.
"Sofia, you heard the call too. We must wake him." And she waved her hands gently over their older brother.
Henry blinked a few times, cracked his neck and stretched as the feeling began to come back to his body. He looked up at the two young girls standing in his room and smiled. "You heard me! Cool!"
He jumped off the bed and began searching his room for something. The girls just stared in amazement at their 14 year old brother. "So what are your names?" He asked matter of factly, as if meeting his younger sisters for the first time and waking up from a ten year nap was an every day occurrence.
"I am Sofia and this is Anastasia." The brunette introduced the pair. "How did you contact us? Why are we here?"
Henry opened the drawer and pulled out his book along with the author's pen. It immediately began glowing in his hand. "It was the pen." Henry said bluntly as if it were obvious.
The girls looked confused but watched as their brother sat at the desk and began writing in a trance. Minutes passed when he finally dropped the pen and inspected what was written.
"I have a message for you. I know how you can defeat Grandpa, I mean, the beast."
...
Regina was pacing the palace furiously with Emma not far behind. It was useless telling her to calm down and she couldn't do anything more than try to support her wife, or at least make sure she didn't rip anyone's heart out on a whim. By now most of the enchanted forest had heard about the missing princesses and there were rumors of an uprising at the borders. It had only been 4 hours but Emma was learning just how quickly the mood of the people could change in fairytale land.
"They have just been waiting for an excuse to come at me!" Regina bellowed. "All this time I thought they had finally accepted me and forgiven my past wrong doings but no! The Evil Queen will always be a threat to them."
"Hey, Regina. Don't listen to rumors. They're just scared about the prophecy is all. It's only been a few hours and yes, it's horrible not knowing where our babies are, but I'm pretty certain they will be back soon. Don't let the scare mongers get you down. You're stronger than this." Emma tried.
"Don't do that Emma! I am sick of hearing hope speeches. I'm sick of being judged by things I did over 40 years ago but mostly, I'm sick of not being able to do anything about anything. This was supposed to be our happily ever after! We have been dragged away from our family too many times. Why can't we just be happy?" Regina was feeling so vunerable and rightly so. They had been tricked into coming here and forced to stay away from Henry and Roland to raise their daughter's who would eventually reunite the family. It was too soon. The girls were 6 years off fulfilling their destinies and somehow had been dragged off through a portal. She was at breaking point. She poofed herself off and Emma huffed and followed suit.
"Regina, honey. Listen to me." Emma soothed as she saw her queen lying in a ball on the bed, clutching their daughter's pillows. "We are happy. We have been for such a long time. Yeah it sucks that our daughters have to be the ones to bring back the happy endings, but there's nothing we can do about that right now. They will be back, I can feel it. We still have time. Trust me." And she spooned around her wife, kissing the back of her neck.