When Regina finally woke up, it took her a while to realize that she was in the back seat of a moving vehicle. The last thing she remembered was the weird man wearing a red beanie grabbing her before forcing a damp cloth onto her nose and mouth. Regina's head still felt heavy and aching, so she allowed it to loll to one side, as her adjusting eyes looked out the window and observed the familiar trees and houses that passed them.
"No..." she heard herself murmur weakly, "...no, not here..."
That was when Regina heard a man's voice that could have come from anywhere. Her eyes frantically moved around the small space she was in, until they settled on a red beanie obscured behind the seat in front of her.
"You're awake," the voice spoke. "Good. Welcome home, Miss Mills."
"Wh-what..." was all Regina could manage in response, but the man seemed to understand anyway.
"You must be confused," the man replied. "Don't worry, I get it. I'd be pretty distressed as well if someone had taken me against my will and kept me drugged on a four day trip back to the place I'd been trying to escape. Unfortunately for you, Regina, someone has paid my boss a lot of money to see you safely returned home."
This man's words weren't making any sense to her. Regina let her head slump back where it was, and she simply gazed out the window of the car. They were driving through the streets of Storybrooke. She could see the faces of people she knew, as well as people she didn't know but still recognized as residents of the place Regina knew as 'home'. She wanted to scream, to bang her fists against the window and seek help from one of the people, but whenever Regina tried to put some effort into moving, it was too much for her and she wouldn't even close to doing what she wanted. The driver had mentioned that he'd kept her drugged.
That's why he just has me in the back seat, Regina knew. Instead of tying me up in the trunk, out of sight. He's not afraid that I'll escape.
Even she had to admit the brilliance in simply keeping her drowsy in the back seat, as opposed to tied up. That way, if they were ever pulled over by police, the driver in the red beanie could simply say that Regina was asleep or passed out from a night of hard drinking. Regina was becoming lost in her thoughts, as fleeting and vague as they were, when the car stopped at a set of traffic lights. It was only as she stared blankly out the window at the people on the sidewalk that she saw him. Robin was walking towards the road, phone in hand. She felt her eyes welling up with tears, silently hoping that he would look at her.
Please, Robin, look up from your damn phone.
And then, he did. Their eyes only met for a few seconds before the traffic lights went green and they drove off down the road, but he had noticed her. Regina had seen the look of shock on his face moments before he vanished from sight. Regina turned her head to look at the driver, and then closed her eyes as tears ran down her face, allowing herself to pass out again.

Zelena was not a fan of waiting, nor was she used to it, but she didn't have much of a choice when summoned to the principal's office. She knew how busy Mrs. Mills was as the principal of Storybrooke High, but Zelena was also busy. Still, it was one of the student council president's duties to report regularly to the principal. She was sitting in the waiting area of the front office, in a chair adjacent to the desk where a sour-looking receptionist named Miss Ginger was typing away on her computer. Zelena liked to imagine that Miss Ginger wasn't even working on anything important, and was simply scrolling through her Facebook feed. For a few minutes, she found herself trying to look at the reflection of the computer screen in Miss Ginger's glasses to see exactly what she was up to, but this was interrupted when the door to the principal's office opened and Miss Mills appeared in the doorway.
"Zelena," she said. "I'll see you now."
Standing up immediately and picking up the schoolbag at her feet, which she hung off one shoulder, Zelena followed Mrs. Mills into the principal's office, closing the door behind them. They resumed their usual seats on either side of the principal's desk.
"I've found two new replacements," said Zelena. "That is, for Glinda and... Regina."
Mrs. Mills nodded. "And they are?"
"Anastasia Tremaine and Isaac Heller."
"I see. Interesting choices. I would have picked Anastasia as well, since her mom is one of the teachers here, but Isaac Heller? His name doesn't ring a bell. Who is he?"
Zelena gave a shrug. "He's in Gold classes, and seems intelligent. Good with words."
"Good with words," Mrs. Mills echoed. "Of course, his appointment to the student council is temporary, I assume."
"Temporary?"
"Yes. He's only filling the seat until Regina comes back to reclaim it."
Zelena frowned at the principal. "Well, I hadn't really considered–"
"Let's just assume that you had. The moment that Regina returns will be the moment that I expect you to let her back onto the student council. She is my daughter, after all."
It was those words that stung the most. She's my daughter. Zelena had not wanted to hear those words from Mrs. Mills. In truth, she was starting to accept that Regina wasn't coming back, and was hoping that Mrs. Mills would start to accept it as well. In the months of Regina's absence, Zelena had been a far better daughter to Mrs. Mills. The principal had even hinted as much herself. She had shown obedience and initiative, and had maintained both her good grades and her leadership of the student council. She had made changes to the school that Mrs. Mills had approved of, which allowed for less bad behavior on the school grounds, and had successfully used fundraisers to acquire large amounts of money to keep certain areas of the school going, as well as to improve others. All in all, Zelena had been the perfect daughter and the perfect student. The idea of being forced to return to the darkness of Regina's shadow was definitely not appealing.
"Of course," Zelena heard herself say. "As soon as Regina comes back, she will resume her position on the council."
"I'm glad that's something we agree on," replied Mrs. Mills. "It is important to me that Regina learns to readjust to the way things were... when she comes back."
The way that Mrs Mills was talking about Regina made Zelena feel somewhat uncomfortable. The principal was sounding more confident than she ever had before when discussing her daughter. Has she found Regina?
"Mrs. Mills," said Zelena, "I was wondering if you'd heard–"
The ringing of the phone interrupted her words, however, and Mrs. Mills picked it up.
"Hello? Yes, this is. You... you have? Where? Okay, I'll be there shortly. Goodbye."
Mrs. Mills dropped the phone back onto the desk and rose from her seat.
"Is everything alright?" Zelena wanted to know.
"Everything's great," Mrs. Mills said as she put on a jacket. "Or, at least, they will be. I have to go now, I suggest you do the same and return to class."
Without another word, the principal left the office, leaving Zelena alone. She watched Mrs. Mills disappear, and then looked back across the desk at the comfortable chair that Mrs. Mills usually occupied. When Zelena was sure that the principal wasn't about to walk back into the office anytime soon, she stood up, and walked around the desk. When she sat back down, it was in the principal's chair. Zelena put her hands on each of the chair's armrests and leaned back in the comfortable seat. She could understand why Mrs. Mills chose it. Even just sitting in it made Zelena feel powerful.
Then, Miss Ginger walked into the office. When she saw Zelena, her jaw nearly dropped to the carpet.
"You," she said. "What the hell are you doing?"
Zelena shot back up, scooping up her schoolbag and feeling incredibly sheepish.
"Nothing. I was, uhh, I was just leaving. Please don't tell Mrs. Mills about this."
"You should go back to class," replied Miss Ginger. Zelena listened to her advice.

It was big, cold, and empty. Regina didn't exactly know where she was, as she had fallen back asleep during the time that they had stopped driving, but she appeared to be inside some kind of large, poorly lit warehouse that had been abandoned for some time. Her arms were forcibly behind her, and her hands were numb, which told Regina that her hands had been tied. She was also sitting down on a hard chair, and couldn't move her legs. The final touch had been the duct tape over her mouth, which prevented her from speaking. The longer she sat there in silence and darkness, the longer Regina had time to think.
Mother is behind this, she knew. She's behind everything in this crooked fucking town.
Regina had tasted freedom, far away from her mother, and it had been sweet. The prospect of a new life, never having to set eyes on Storybrooke again, had been all too appealing. And apparently, all too good to be true. Regina was starting to wonder if there was some sort of curse on her that prevented her from ever leaving town.
Unlikely, Regina thought to herself, although Mother could easily pass herself off as an evil witch.
That was when a small square of light appeared in the distance. Regina narrowed her eyes, which had grown accustomed to the dark, and realized that it was a doorway. And someone was standing in it. She could see the silhouette against the white brightness. Then, the square of light vanished, but Regina could still make out the human shape moving towards her.
"Regina?"
It was Robin's voice. The closer he came, the more sure Regina was that it was him. By the time he was standing in front of her, she could make out his facial features in the darkness. He knelt down and ripped the tape from her mouth. It stung, but Regina had never been happier.
"Robin..." she whispered hoarsely. "You found me."
Robin nodded. "I followed the car you were in to here, and waited until I was certain the coast was clear. What's going on?"
"What does it look like? Some lunatic is working for my mother, and he brought me back here. Quick, we don't have long."
Fortunately, it didn't take long for Robin to untie Regina's hands and feet. He tried to help her to her feet, but when Regina fell to the ground, Robin caught her. He decided to carry her out of the warehouse. Outside, they were surrounded by forest, although there was a thin road that led back to town.
"We can't go that way," Regina said. "That's where they'll come back."
"Where do we go, then?" Robin asked.
Regina looked around, beginning to despair. Then, she decided. "Through the forest. We'll have to keep a distance from the road, but still travel beside it, and make our way back into town that way. If any cars come, we'll have the trees to hide behind."
"Okay," said Robin, before carrying her into the woods with him. "I'm glad you're not too heavy."