When I found Charming I knew that I was never going to love anyone as much. He made my heart beat. He gave me purpose. Never have I ever felt that comfort and love with anyone else. When I became pregnant, Charming and I could not have been happier. We turned our beautiful love into something even more beautiful. Her every hiccup, every kick, every turn was a reminder of how perfect my life was. I imagined having a beautiful little girl who would have Charming's eyes and hair, and my face and tenacity. I pictured our family riding horse-back on Sunday mornings and having dinner together every night. I was excited for the day I could brush my daughter's hair with the paddle brush my mother used on my own hair, and helping her with her studies. I wanted memories. Instead I became nothing but a memory to her. She barely knows me. I am an idea rather than a presence.

But the night I gave birth to our beautiful little girl I vowed to protect her. Regina's evil ways wouldn't touch my child. Unfortunately, I didn't know how badly my plan would backfire. Since I couldn't protect my daughter then, I've done everything I can to protect her now. That includes jumping into a portal after her.

The sun had woken me about an hour ago. I took the time I had alone to assess the area, gather food, and figure out our plan. Not to mention, I spent a majority of the time Emma was still unconscious to just watch her sleep. That was another thing I really missed in her childhood. I could see her begin to stir, so I dropped the wood I was collecting and ran to her side.

"Wh-Where are we?" Her hand touched her cut forehead. I had cleaned it out while she was still asleep. She pulled herself up on her forearms and looked around.

"We're in the Enchanted Forest…" I looked at the cuts and bruises on her cheeks as well as her arms. "How are you feeling?" She pushed my hand from her face and stood up on her own.

"I'm fine. Where's my mom? What happened to David?" Panic struck her.

She didn't remember what happened, because when she fell she hit her head. When I saw her fall into the portal there was never a doubt in my mind that I should follow her. All I cared about was catching her hand in time. The last thing I remember, before waking up in the Enchanted Forest, was seeing Regina jump in after us. But that was the last time I saw her.

"I'm not sure. Last I saw Regina was following us, and David was back in the mausoleum." I watched as she brushed dirt from her clothes and pull her hair up off her neck.

"How did we get here? How do we get back home?"

She began to pace nervously, looking around and trying to figure how to get out. Her scowl was just like her father's. It was the way her eyebrows furrowed. However, I am biased. I love seeing the love of my life in our daughter. She was walking in circles, so much so I couldn't even keep my eyes on her long enough. Eventually I had to just grab her by the shoulders and command her attention. For the first time, our eyes connected. There was an undeniable tether between us. I could feel our connection with every fiber in my being. A pull in my heart sank all the way to my stomach by just looking in those beautiful, perfect and familiar eyes. She licked her lips and calmed herself down for just a moment.

"I promise you that I will get us back to Storybrooke. You need to trust in me, okay? I will take care of us." Without thinking about it I put the palm of my hand over her cheek and pulled her close in. More surprising than me reaching out to her is her not pulling away from me. She closed her eyes and drew in a long, deep breath. "Now we need to get going. It's going to get dark soon and we have a walk ahead of us."

She didn't follow me, but rather stared off into space. This whole other world was so different to her. It must be so confusing. She was born in this world, grew up in that one, but her whole family is from this one. This place is magical in every sense of the word. This is where my mother taught me how to rule as queen humbly and kindly. This is where I fell in love for the first time. This is the same place I fought for my life and freedom, yet the place I gave birth to this beautiful baby girl. She didn't know how much power this place already held for her.

"Wait!" She raced to catch up with me. "Where are we heading?"

"Well, Emma…We're going home." She raised her eyebrows and I'm pretty sure I saw a smile creep up.

These woods were my home. My kingdom was my home, but for a huge part of my life these woods were my salvation. I had spent a lot of timing memorizing paths, remembering which side moss grows on each tree. It wasn't hard for me to figure out exactly how far away home was. If we kept walking with very minimal breaks then we would be there before dusk. But I've never done this kind of hike with a sixteen year old teenage girl. It surprises me how little her attention span is. But I wouldn't change it for a second, because our conversation never ended. She asked questions about the Enchanted Forest and I gave her everything I knew. She stayed close beside me the whole time. Every time I looked over and saw my daughter standing beside me, it literally gave me chills and I would be overcome with sadness that Charming wasn't here to enjoy it with me.

We'd spent hours searching for water. She had mentioned a few times that she needed something to drink sow when I saw a clearing up ahead I told her we would stop for a drink. We climbed over the mounds of rocks to look over the lake. It looked bare. The grass was dead, and trees were scarce.

"This place was once the most beautiful piece of land I have ever seen." I placed my hand over my eyes and we stared out at the sun hiding just behind the mountains.

"It still is…"

I reached for her hand to help her off the rocks and towards the lake. We scooped our hands into the water and drank until we couldn't drink any more. She fell into the sand.

"Do you think they're okay? Regina and David?" She drew her fingers in the sand, trying to avoid my eyes.

"If I know David, he is figuring out a way to get to us as we speak." She nodded and continued to run her fingers along the grains. I stood up and brushed the sand off my clothes. If I was right, we only had a few more miles before we would be there. But the sun was beginning to set, so we were racing daylight.

We grabbed one more sip of water before setting back on the path. It was my priority that I got us out of these woods and into somewhere safe before darkness took over. Since we've been gone, this place changed. It's no longer safe. Every few minutes we could hear the rumblings of an ogre or the screeches of wilds animals. Emma put on a brave face, but I knew she was scared.

"There it is…Home."

It was still standing, in all of its glory. It was just as beautiful as when we left it. It feels right to have Emma by my side as we walk into the house she was born in and the last place we were together as a family. My hand reached for hers as we crossed the draw bridge and entered through the grand archway. Most of the walls were crumbling, and the furniture was thrown throughout, most of it faded to a harsh color. We stepped over chairs and tables to make our way through.

"You lived here?" She stood in the center of the main entrance, her head positioned towards the sky and circling around. "It's huge!"

"We lived here…" I wanted to emphasize that this was her life, too. She has always been a part of my equation.

The one reason I came here wasn't for the memories, even though it felt incredibly invigorating to be home. I came here because the only portal I knew may still exist in our home. Actually, it may still be in Emma's bedroom. The same portal that took my daughter to Maine may do it once more. The stairs seemed to be in rougher shape then I remember, but we were able to rush up them fast enough without them threatening a collapse. I let her lead us through, because it seemed like she knew instinctually where she was. She walked into her bedroom as though she's walked into that room every day. She walked into it as if it were actually her bedroom.

In the corner, beyond the crib and torn wall paper, was the portal. Emma stepped outside on the balcony while I examined our ride home. The wood was still intact. It was still held together, a little rough around the edges, but it looked like it may work.

"I can't believe this is actually your- our…our home." Her elbows leaned against the railing.

The moon hung high in the sky, enveloping the black despair and outlined with a cluster of stars. I stepped out onto the balcony beside her, and the bitter air hit me. I took my sweater off and draped it over her shoulders. This air was so much fresher than Storybrooke's. It was just a hint of clarity mixed with slight sweetness. It felt like I hadn't been breathing this whole time, and I was finally able to just inhale. It opened every pore in my body.

"A long time ago…"

She stared far off into the night. I left her to daydream a little, so I could try the portal. It looked a little worn, but ultimately it looked functional. So I opened the door, placed a teddy bear laying on the ground, inside and shut the doors tightly. After a few moments I opened it and saw the teddy bear sitting right where I placed it. Nothing.

We tried everything we could. We tried shaking it, kicking it, closing our eyes and wishing. We tried everything we could, but it wasn't working. Emma collapsed on the floor beside it, placing her head on the ground and folding her hands on her stomach. I laid down beside her and tried to catch my breath.

"If this doesn't work what are we going to do?" She said softly.

"We make it work. All we need is magic."

"Well, where do we get that?" She asked.

"I'm not sure. But, I will find it."

I turned my head to see her, and along her cheek rolled one single tear. It careened its way down her cheek bones identical to mine. My hand pulled hers off her stomach and held it tightly. She squeezed back and tried to pull her tears in. To show emotion was a trait my mother made me appreciate. It was those, like Regina or Rumpel, who couldn't show emotion that lacked meaning in their lives. There were so many lessons I wanted to teach my child. My dream was to be able to nurture and love her in the loving way my mother did with me. I wanted her to know what love was and to never fear it. Being raised by Regina could only mean she was taught to rely on no one but herself and to reject hope. If I were to know that by sending my daughter away meant she would end up with Regina, I would have spent every day in that spell never knowing who I truly was.

Eventually we fell asleep on the floor of Emma's nursery. Our hands intertwined, I pressed my eyes tight and envisioned Charming on the other side of me. Sixteen years away from my daughter, and my husband. It physically hurt not to have him here with me and our daughter, but having Emma was a huge consolation. She was half of him. And it was obvious she was his daughter. Her smile, her laugh, her eyes, fearlessness was everything she inherited from her dad.

The next morning we rose with the sun. I forgot how different of a lifestyle it was in the Enchanted Forest. Every morning the sun seemed to rise and shine brighter than in Storybrooke. It wasn't nearly as hard to wake up in the morning. Emma had woken before me and already went outside to explore a little. She came back with two handfuls of berries. Some were poisonous, others were rotten, but regardless her effort was admirable. The brook was still running smoothly under the bridge, so I pulled up a gallon of water and brought it to the feast of berries. We sat cross-legged in the middle of the living room with nothing but our hands for plates. For the first time, we had a real conversation. We talked about nothing, but it felt like everything. She told me how she rides horses and has won every single show she's done. She said she hates Math, but loves History. And she said her best friend, August, was the only person she ever felt really close to. She had a hard time making friends in school because she felt like no one would give her a chance after everything her mother, Regina, had done to the community. I remember her having a hard time fitting in at school. She was just different than everyone else. Most teachers blamed it on Regina, but I always thought Emma had a spark. Little did I know the beautiful, innocent, blonde-hair beauty I enjoyed watching was actually my child. Regina's curse took my life from me, and drained the emotion from my heart. It was so terrible that I didn't even know my own daughter was in my classroom.

After breakfast we ransacked the castle for weapons and sustenance for our trip. Emma came running down the stairs with a sword of her father's and my bow and arrows. The look of triumph on her face was absolutely adorable.

"I found them underneath the bed!" She handed me the bow.

I brushed dust from the top of her head and pulled the bag of arrows over my shoulder. She tucked the sword in a holster wrapped around her waist. Our clothes were filthy and torn, but I didn't have clothes here anymore so I couldn't even change. Poor Emma had only a shirt and jeans. There was a sheet in the maid's closet I tucked into a backpack for tonight if she got cold.

"Do you know how to shoot arrows?"

"Are you kidding? They are my weapon of choice. Do you know how?"

"I've never even seen one before." She admitted.

"Come on…." I led her to the back yard.

Standing at about a fifty foot distance, we aimed our shots at the big oak I used to practice on all of the time. She tried holding the bow, but her arms were loose. I pulled them up in a firm, comfortable position. Then I lowered her aim so the arrow was directly in line with the bullseye. She pulled the string back quickly.

"Wait….Relax. You need to hold it firmly, but you need to guide it so you can't just whip it around. Close your right eye, stare the target down until the tip of your arrow is in direct line with it. Then, before you release, breathe. That's a very key point to remember. Everyone forgets to breathe." She nodded, sucked in a deep breath and as she released the air in her lungs, her fingers released the bow and arrow. It glided directly into the center of the target. Her eyes shot open wide and she jumped up and down a few times with glee.

"I did it!" I laughed uncontrollably at her excitement.

"You're a natural, kid." She came back down to earth, but was still smiling. "It must be in your genes." I winked, and she smirked back at me.

Once we both shot a few times, we gathered all of the arrows and sharpened them before we started out on our trek. The only way to get magic was to go looking for it. I remember Charming telling me about this lake, before. The waters of this lake had a rejuvenating property. Meaning that whatever this water touched would return it back to its original form. If the lake was still there then we could collect the water and bring it back to the dresser. If it wasn't, then we would need to come up with another plan, but for now this is all I could think of. Emma didn't seem to mind the hike. She was so intrigued by the woods. Her head jerked in every direction. Her questions weren't just about the forest, but about everyone in the forest. She had questions about people I have never even heard of before. Apparently she's seen some of their movies. What Emma didn't understand is that in Storybrooke the Enchanted Forest is just a fairytale land, and all of its inhabitants are characters. In reality, in this world, they are people with real feelings and real lives.

"What's that, Mary Margaret?" She whispered and outstretched her finger to a huge depression in the ground in front of us.

It was a footprint. Of an animal I've had to fend off many of times before. It was the size of the entire length of my body. A small branch broke, and immediately I put my mouth over Emma's mouth and silently told her we needed to be quiet. She nodded. The silence was suddenly filled with rumbling and roaring. The trees were parting, falling to the ground, and the ground shook. It heard us.

"What is it?" She whispered.

"Ogre." I replied softly.

It was within seconds that it found our location. They worked off of sound and scent, since they were blind. It must have heard us talking or walking. The only thing to do once an ogre has found you is to run and run fast. As it got closer we couldn't keep silent anymore. I grabbed Emma's shoulders and yelled Run! in her face. That was all it took. She started sprinting so fast that I could barely keep up with her. We came into a clearing, but only five yards away was a forest. Emma didn't even need me to tell her where to go, she was heading straight towards it. My right foot got stuck underneath a root, and it brought my entire body down with it. I looked up to see Emma disappearing into the woods. Lying on my stomach I could feel the ogre towering over me. I reached for my bow and arrow but it had flung ahead of me when I fell. I turned to my back and saw its nostrils flare as it breathed in my scent. It opened its mouth and let out a screech. The gust of wind was so strong I could barely hold myself up. At least Emma was safe. As I closed my eyes to avoid watching whatever was going to happen, a whistle echoed through the trees and the ogre stood up. Emma. My bow was in her arms, and an arrow was lined in the ogre's path. She took a deep breath and let it out. Just like that an arrow was pierced into the ogre's eye. It fell over in pain. I got up and ran directly towards her, colliding into her and lifting her off her feet.

"You should have kept running, sweetheart!" I smiled into her neck.

"You can't leave me here alone!" She choked out. Her arms were so tightly wrapped around my neck I could barely breathe. I put her on her feet and smiled so proudly at her.

"Never again." I grabbed her hand and we ran together – in complete sync.