Alice kept her back pressed against the tree for awhile. She was scared. She didn't know how to do what Zelena had asked her. And it was getting dark. She'd never been outside in the dark before. Things she'd only heard faint whispers of outside of her tower were now even louder. And she could feel her need for one of her blankets growing. She didn't like the color the sky had turned. She couldn't see through it. And she used her eyes to see what danger was around her. She couldn't brace herself for pain if she couldn't even see it coming. Alice started to shake. She didn't like this. And she didn't know how to do what Zelena wanted her to do. Luna came and laid down in her lap, her normal way of calming Alice down providing a layer of warmth.

"Idon'twanttogohome," Alice told Luna. She was scared of how much pain she'd be met with. She was sure mother would need to punish her for months to make up for everything she'd done wrong. And those were only the things mother had a way of knowing about. Alice feared the consequences of the things she wouldn't know but she feared not telling mother the truth more. She'd have to admit to it. All of it. She wasn't sure which thing would anger mother the most. She realized she had tried to anger Zelena on more than one occasion. Mother would be beyond furious. And she'd have to tell her that to. She'd know if she was hiding something. Alice shuddered. There was a reason she'd been so scared when Zelena was trying to help her with her wrist. "It'sgoingtobebad."

Luna stayed stretched out on top of Alice's legs, preventing her from panicking too much.

Alice fell alseep in front of the tree.

"This is all my fault! I should've gone with her. Should have sent someone with her. I thought she knew how to get back."

"Zelena."

"No, Regina! Do not tell me I'm wrong! She won't sleep in a bedroom because she's scared by how big it is! She must be terrafied right now! And I did that!"

"Mom, c'mon. You're trying. It's hard. And we'll find her. I'm sure she's found somewhere small enough to sit and she has Luna with her so she'll keep her calm for long enugh that we can find her. Now we'll all go outside and look. Henry has those walkie talkies of his so we can all split up and look."

They went outside and did exactly as Robin had suggested.

Alice woke up when it was still dark e any and glanced around her. She still wasn't any closer to where she was told to go. She stood up.

"Ihavetogohome." A few tears cascaded down Alice's cheek but she agressivly wiped them away with her arm. She couldn't walk into the tower with tear stains. Her mother was likely already deciding that the only time she'd be allowed to move ever again was while she beat her. Alice recalled the many times mother had threatened to restrain her and the few times she actually had. It was only ever when she hurt herself.

Alice had met Robin that day. She'd done something wrong. She'd ran and she'd fallen and hurt herself. She decided she'd hide it. Just this once. She just didn't want mother to know. She'd broken a rule and mother cared more about the rules than she did about Alice.

"Come put this stuff away." Alice had done as she was told. The slight shake of fear not arousing suspicion.

"You're pathetic. I know you have your uses. But seriously? Shaking whenever I come near you?" Mother had stepped closer and Alice had flinched. An action she did more often than she even realized. Mother had hit her. "Finish this and make the bed."

Alice had winced with every slight movement, slilently praying mother wouldn't notice. She'd done something wrong. As she was making the bed her wrist hurt and she winced and then let out of a whimper of pain.

"Why do you sound like you're in pain? I haven't beaten you in days. I'm happy to change that if you've forgotten the lesson already. Do I need to?"

"No mother," Alice had choked out, desperatly wanting to grab her wrist and find a way to make it hurt less. "Come here, then."

Alice had done as she was told and approached mother, stopping a few feet away. "Your wrist. It's swollen. Care to tell me what happened."

Alice clenched her eyes shut tight. "I have ways to get the answer out of you, or you could just tell me."

" 'm sorry." Alice sandwhiched her rushed explanation in between apologies.

"You ran?"

"Iwon'tdoitagain," Alice promised, begging that this mistake would be the one that wouldn't be one mother chose to punish her for.

"I'm sure you won't," Alice was relieved for a moment. "But, what are my rules about you doing bad things?"

" ." Mother had nodded.

"Yes. And this is a very bad thing. You're not so much as to move without my permission and you ran and tried to hide it. You understand that just one beating will never be enough, don't you." Alice held back tears. Even one always felt like more than enough pain to last a lifetime.

"I'msorry." Alice tried to plead but mother never listened.

By the time mother had fnished yelling and beating her Alice was bleeding and she wasn't ready for what mother had said she would do.

"One isn't enough. But I can't kill you. So for at least the next few days things are going to be a little different."

The tone frightened Alice. "Follow me."

Alice did as she was told. She couldn't take any more pain. "Sit."

Alice sat down and glanced up at mother. What was she doing? Mother returned and threw something on the ground. Alice flinched.

"Since you can't seem to help yourself from moving around without permission, this should solve the problem. "Wrist. Now."

Alice handed her the noninjured wrist. "Nope. The one that's hurting you."

Alice delicatly outstretched her injured wrist. Mother had grabbed it roughly and hooked something around it. "This is a restraint. And Until you learn how to listen, you will stay attached to the wall unless it's for the several punishements you'll be getting over the next week or to use the bathroom. Are we clear?"

Alice had nodded.

Mother had finished setting the restraint up and Alice couldn't let tears fall as she'd set it up next to her own bed instead of in Alice's little corner. She'd not slept much at all that week. Mother had been completly serious about the restraint. And even more serious about how much she'd punish her. Alice had quit trying to run even without mother home after that.

Mother had decided that she'd learned her lesson and released her from the chains a mere day before Robin had returned to the tower.

Alice was sure that her life would be worse when she got home. Would mother even let her walk to the bathroom unsupervised anymore? Or would she have to sit and listen to all the reasons she deserved to be punished? Would she ever be allowed to stay in the tower without being restained again? It'd only happened a few times but it scared Alice. She couldn't get away from mother even while she slept when she was that angry. Why was Zelena making her do this? Why couldn't she stay where no one hurt her? Why couldn't she stay where she never had to feel the metal of the restraints mother used cutting into her wrist while she tried desperatley to apologize for something that had made mother that angry? Why did she have to go back there?

Alice started to cry again and sat down on the grass. "Nonononono," she told Luna. "Ithurts!" She was begging with the dog to find her a way out of doing this. She didn't want this. She knew she'd never be able to accept what mother did again. She wouldn't be able to handle it any more.

Alice sat in the place she'd found and cried for a while. At some point she started to feel a lot of pain. She really needed to pee but no one was around to tell her she could use the bathroom. And there wasn't any bathroom she could use nearby. She'd seen Luna go in the grass a number of times. Was that okay? She didn't know but she couldn't hold it anymore.

"Canigotothebathroom?" Alice asked Luna who told her it was okay. Alice tried and made a mess. But she no longer felt like her lower body was going to hurt her.

Alice adjusted slightly. She felt the tears slide down her cheeks more. It didn't hurt. She knew that once she got back any time she cried the tears would rub painfully against the brusies that would form. She couldn't go back to that. She had to but she couldn't face it. Mother couldn't punish her if she didn't go back. And if she ignored Zelena how would she know either. She wasn't going back!

"I'mnotgoinghome." She told herself.

What if Zelena found her? Alice started to practice telling her no. "No." the word felt strange but Alice hoped it'd work.

Everyone had been searching for a while. Zelena was still worrying and wrecked with guilt.

Finally, after what felt like forever, Zelena saw Luna laying next to Alice who was petting her. Zelena approached her.

"No."

Zelena blinked. Alice usually didn't know how to say no but she didn't know what was wrong.

"What?"

"No.I'mnotgoinghome."

"Alice, please?"

"No." Alice was terrafied but she wouldn't go back to that tower where mother only ever hurt her and gave her orders.

"Alice, why not?"

"WhydoIhaveto?"

"You can't live in the woods, Alice."

Alice shook her head. "Idon'twanttogohome."

"Ok, where do you want to go."

"Withyou."

Zelena relized her mistake. Alice thought the tower was home. No wonder she'd gotten so far away and not come back.

"I meant home as in my house. Not the tower."

Alice nodded.

Zelena got her back to the house and gave her food and drink and gave her unsoiled clothes to change into.

"Alice, this is your home. Not the tower. Here is where home is, okay?"

Alice nodded and everyone spent the rest of the day playing games.

It took a few more tries, with someone showing Alice where it was okay to go to, before Alice took Luna for walks by herself.