"Emma?" Regina whisper-shouted, trying to get the blonde's attention. "Ssst! Emma! Emma!"

The blonde turned around quickly with bewildered look in her eyes. Regina met her gaze and everything inside her crumbled. It was the look Henry gave her after he came back from New York. Blank.

"Emma?" Regina tried for the last time, her insides writhing in pain of going through it again.

"Are you talking to me?" Emma asked suspiciously, frozen in the place.

"Yes."

"My name's not Emma, my name's Raca." The blonde opposed with a frown.

"I know you and your parents. And they love you so much, they would never name you "worthless"."

"What?" Emma asked, showing all the confusion she felt.

"That's what Raca means. Worthless, good-for-nothing."

"How do you even know such stuff?" Emma asked suspicion and anger creeping into her voice.

"It's a long and difficult story," Regina said to avoid answering that question. It was something she hadn't told anyone before.

"You better start talking, if you want me trust you." Emma said curtly, eyeing Regina who was standing afar behind the fence.

Regina casted her eyes down, thinking about it. "Okay," she whispered and walked closer to the fence, sitting down on stump.

Emma left the well behind her and took a few cautious steps towards Regina. She maintained a distance even though there was a fence between them.

"There was a time when I was… a prisoner in my own home. My mother arranged marriage of convenience behind my back and wanted me to have children with my husband." She cringed at calling him that. "This was one of the hints she dropped."

"But you didn't like him?" Emma asked when Regina fell silent.

"There was not much to love. He adored his daughter and treated his kingdom nice, but I was a trophy, alone and…" Regina sighed.

"And? Did you have a child with him?"

"No." Regina breathed, considering telling Emma about the infertility potion, but she decided against it.

"You said you were a trophy… that's usually said about younger wives, right?" Emma asked and Regina nodded. "How big was the age difference between you two?"

"I was barely of age and he was already an old man."

"What? That's disgusting!" Emma exclaimed, horrified. "Why did your mother do it?"

"She had no heart." Regina paused. "Literally."

Emma raised her eyebrow in question.

"She ripped her heart out and buried it. She was not able to love, she only wanted power."

"So she didn't love you?" Emma asked and walked closer to the fence, sitting on the ground.

"She wasn't able to, no."

"I'm sorry." Emma said and casted her eyes down for a moment, studying Regina secretly. She saw the woman was telling the truth, while talking about painful memories. She wanted to trust her.

"So my parents are somewhere out there?" Emma started shyly.

"Where do you think you come from?" Regina asked with mix of emotions in her voice. But no biting or sarcasm. "Who were you born to? Do you remember?"

Emma tried to remember something. Anything really.

"I don't remember anything. I remember just like two days and the rest is hazy, it's like I've always been here." Emma tried to explain and looked at Regina for help.

"See?" Regina pointed out.

"Where are they? And why I am held captive here? Did they sell me?"

"No, calm down, they did not sell you. A curse came between you. Again." She whispered the last word. "Morgana placed it. Have you met her?"

"Is it the witch who owns this palace?"
"That's her."

"Then I have. I remember waking up and she was very angry and asked me if I could do magic, she even forced me to try something, but I can't do magic, so she threw me out of there, telling me I will be her servant." Emma said, for unknown reason feeling like she could be open to the woman sitting in front of her.

"Oh." Regina said and started sorting her thoughts. Should she tell Emma she does have magic or-

"So I am not Raca." Emma stated.

"No. Emma." Regina said and felt warmth spreading through her chest at the sound of the name drawing across her lips.
"And you are?"
"Regina."

"I would say nice to meet you, but since you apparently know me… Why are you talking to me anyway?" Emma pulled away a bit, suddenly struck with a question that hadn't come to her mind before because she was overflowing with thoughts and emotions.

"I came to save you and take you back home." Regina smiled encouragingly, but Emma didn't take that.

"Take me home? How can I know you didn't just make everything up? I was kidnapped just yesterday and had my memory erased, this world is full of cunning witches, how do I know you're just not one of them?"
"Emma, wait-"
"No, you wait. If all you're saying is true, I will go with you. But I have to remember first."

"But how do I-" Regina desperately asked, but Emma didn't let her finish.
"I don't know. See you tomorrow, same place, same time. Figure something out." Emma said quickly and got up, turning away from Regina, aiming back to the palace, taking the pail out of the well with her.

"Goodnight Emma." Regina called behind her.

One corner of blonde's lips curled up. "Goodnight."

Regina stood there for a while, watching Emma's back retreating in the dimness. Then she turned around and walked into the woods. It was not too late, but the sun wasn't shining much and she had to be quick to make herself a shelter.

She ran for a while, until she was hidden enough in the forest, but she still could see the castle in between the trees. She started collecting branches, leaves and moss, putting it all together the way she saw and helped Snow White do once back in the times when she was under disguise as a peasant with Rumplestiltskin's help.

Soon enough she had a sufficient shelter without even using magic, which she spared for the fight with Morgana.

She lay down under the roof of branches and pulled the jacket closer around herself. Now she had enough time for proper thinking and she started worrying about Morgana. She couldn't be killed as long as she was wearing the necklace. That's why Rumplestiltskin wanted it, that did sound like his kind of merchandise.

She decided to get Emma to remember first and then use her help to defeat Morgana. Because as the blonde said, she wasn't going anywhere with Regina until she remembered anyway.

I will have to tell her everything.

I will do anything to get her back.