Hey guys, it's been a while! Again, so sorry for keeping the suspense going for so long! I just came back from a humanitarian trip to Africa, so the plane ride home turned into a seven hour writing marathon. Really hope you all enjoy!

Regina couldn't keep her eyes off the front door.

With every second that ticked by, her worries grew stronger and stronger. She just wanted her daughter to come back, for the last 24 hours of their lives to have never happened. There was an ache in her chest, a twisted, heavy knot that she recognized all too well. Regina hated herself for letting things spiral out of her control; she did that with Owen what seemed like centuries ago, and she even did that with her own son. It alarmed her, this strange connection to her former self. After everything she had endured though, with Robin and with herself, she thought she had left the last traces of that Regina behind.

"Regina, if you continue to stare at that door any longer, it'll probably burst into flames."

Turning her head towards her husband, Regina realized there were tears pooled in her eyes.

"I just... I want her back. I want her in my arms, Robin."

Seeing her distress automatically softened his emotions. Walking over towards her, he gently encased her in his arms and pulled her close.

"I know. And she will come back- she loves you."

Regina allowed herself to loosen up in his arms, though her nerves were serving as an electric current throughout her body.

"But that doesn't change the fact that I messed up," she stated bluntly, a tear trailing down her cheek, "it's my fault that this has gone as far as it did. I should've spent more time with her instead of getting my job back. If I would've known she was spending so much time with that woman..."

"Regina, stop that. This has nothing to do with you. And this woman... She seems alright. I think she's just trying to be nice to Caroline."

Letting her tears soak into the fabric of Robin's shirt, Regina tightened her grip around him. "She's our age! I get it if she gave her a tiny bit of pity, but not like this. I don't feel right about this at all."

When Robin didn't respond, she assumed it meant he felt the same way.

"We should've went with her, why didn't we? She's out there somewhere. And the earrings... That can't be a coincidence." The last words lowered her voice as if they had fallen down a sharp cliff. Her eyes connected with her husband's in search for confirmation. In the ten years they had been married, all of their decisions had been mutual.

His face set in perplexity, Robin took a few moments before providing an answer.

"Uh..."

"Are you saying Caroline is in trouble?" The voice of their fifteen year old intervened from the top of the staircase.

Both Robin and Regina swirled around, completely off guard. Neither of them knew who was going to take charge of the upcoming conversation.

"No, your sister is not in trouble." Robin finally answered, before the silence became too unbearable. "We're just... Discussing the gift Zelena got her, that's all."

Remaining on the top of the staircase, Roland did not seem impressed with his father's answer.

"You seem to forget that I've been here the entire day. After you forgot about me at Granny's, Will had to drive me home because Henry left with Grace." He paused, a teenage glint of betrayal in his eyes. "I heard you two chewing her out- I heard the whole thing. Why does it matter if some lady with an English accent gave her some earrings?"

Regina drew in an uneasy breath. Battling with two out of three kids wasn't what she was expecting to accomplish on the date of her daughter's birthday party.

"Because she's ten years old and doesn't need to be taking such expensive gifts from people she doesn't know very well."

Roland began his way down the stairs, his perplexed look only growing as he went.

"Yeah, that's what you told her," he said, looking his parents straight in the eye. It was bold and it was slightly intimidating; he was already passed Regina's height, continuing to grow at a rate that would most likely pass Robin's height as well. The son of a thief, with the instincts of an archer.

"Alright, fine." Robin blurted out, causing a wide eyed look of surprise from his wife. "Your sister has magic. We- we didn't want to tell you because we didn't want to risk Caroline finding out."

There was a long, delayed silence that followed. Regina practically grimaced through clenched teeth; the torture of silence was far worse than any immediate anger her son could have showed. But that was the price of keeping the secret, and she knew that far better than she ever wanted to. Secrets were dark voids of distrust and heavily concentrated anger. Unfortunately, they also carried the promise of a carefree life, one buried within ignorance.

"The earrings she wears contains powers strong enough to control her own. When you were four years old... There was an accident. That's when we swore we would wait until she was older to tell her."

His darkened eyes narrowed. "What kind of accident?"

"Her magic went haywire. It landed you in a coma for about eight days."

"-we did everything we did in your best interest-"

"Save it, Mom," Roland sighed, turning back to his father. "So I almost died? And nobody thought it was a good idea to tell me?"

Robin lowered his eyes. He could feel the pain radiating off of Regina like waves of heat.

"I'm- we're- so sorry, Roland. Magic always has a price, and we don't have any intention of destroying the peace in this town."

Again, more silence. Regina wished she could read his mind and see what he was thinking about.

"She's really in trouble isn't she," he muttered, "look, if you guys gotta go save her, then do it."

Regina shook her head, forcing her emotions down. "We don't know where this woman lives- we don't even know who she is."

"She lives in the woods, in that old farmhouse at the edge of the clearing. I saw her walking down the path more than once. See," he said wryly, something Robin found remarkably familiar, "you two aren't the only ones who have secrets."

Caroline flinched as a slight prick sent a spark of pain to her ear.

"Oh God, I'm so sorry," Zelena said in a worried tone, "it's difficult to do this on someone else."

She was hovering over the girl, her eyes set in precision as she worked the second earring through her right ear. Caroline could feel her warm breath on her cheek.

"There we go," she announced triumphantly, after taking a step back to admire her success. "Look at you, Caroline Hood. You're such a pretty girl."

Caroline smiled timidly. "Thanks," she replied in a soft voice, a growing confusion entering her mind. She kept thinking the same thing- now what? Zelena seemed to have a clear idea on what was happening. To the ten year old, however, she was on a mission to politely give back the earrings her mother so strongly disapproved of.

"You seemed angry when you came here," Zelena continued, "are you angry with your mother for making you give the earrings back?"

She thought for a moment. "Yeah, I guess I am... But you know what's weird? My mom and I have never fought like this before. Ever. After the party though... She was really mad. I don't think I did anything wrong."

"You didn't do anything wrong, I promise. People will disappoint you your entire life, Caroline. You just have to accept it- no matter how much they change, they will always be the selfish, caniving people they are. And when no one else is there for you, one thing will be. Rage. And loathing, hatred, a darkness so deep and endless it consumes your entire soul-"

"Stop! Stop it!" Caroline yelled, a helpless burst of sound cutting Zelena off abruptly. "What are you doing?"

The girl swore she saw a glimpse of something new in her eyes. But, as quickly as it appeared, it was replaced by another tender smile and a deep breath.

"Sorry, I just wanted to... Show you something."

"What?"

Zelena gestured to her left; Caroline's terrified gaze was soon matched with a blue coffee mug filled with cooled hot cocoa- a mug that was two feet off the table it was originally placed on.

"Zelena, why are you doing that?"

"I'm not. You are."

Another moment of agonizing silence passed. Caroline's eyes, however, never once left Zelena's.

"No. I-"

Her voice was paper thin, yet carried an unusual amount of force between the two.

"Caroline, I swear it's not me. I knew there was something special about you since the first time we talked."

The contrast in her expression brought continued waves of confusion towards the ten year old. She couldn't deny the feeling of hyperactivity in both the tips of her fingers and the core of her body; it was as if a switch had been turned on that she never even knew existed. Somewhere deep inside, Caroline knew she was telling her nothing but the truth.

"Your earrings must have blocked the magical currents in your body. I just can't believe I haven't seen it until now."

Her words slipped into silence and left nothing in return. An instinctive snap occurred inside of Caroline's head then, a painful realization that shot through her in a split second; it sounded deafening in her ears.

"I- I've got to go."

She felt sick as she grabbed for the earrings in front of her, refusing to give Zelena a second glance. The door to the farmhouse slammed shut seconds later, followed by the mug smashing to the ground.

Caroline didn't pay any attention to the pins digging into her palms; she simply ran and ran.

Nothing mattered. Her family was the last group people she ever wanted to see.

She had been lied to.

Dun dun duunnn... the drama continues!

By the way, how AWESOME was SDCC yesterday?