Seance

Regina had a plan, and she had invited the rest of the team over to explain it. It turned out to be a seance, a way to learn about Zelena's past directly from Cora.

"Zelena came by this morning gloating," Regina began, her frustration evident. "She said that my weakness is that I don't know enough about her past. So I have decided to summon someone who does."

I exchanged a glance with my mom, who looked equally puzzled. "Who?" I asked.

"We have to talk to my mother," Regina finished her tone grave. "It's a fairly simple ritual but not often performed."

"If it's so easy to talk to the dead, why isn't it done more often?" I questioned.

Regina explained, "Because to do it, you need the murder weapon and the murderer." We all turned our attention to my mom as Regina struck a match, lighting the murder candle at both ends, allowing the wax to drip into metal pans underneath.

"What do we need to do?" I asked, ready to assist in any way I could.

"Focus on Cora," Regina instructed, taking my hand. We closed our eyes and concentrated, and suddenly, a powerful wind began to swirl around us. A vortex opened overhead, but Cora seemed unwilling to communicate. She remained elusive.

We left the room disappointed, and David voiced our next plan, "Maybe Belle will have more luck. There has to be something to help us."

"Right," I agreed, my determination growing. "My magic gets more powerful every day. By the time this all goes down, I'll be ready."

"Make sure you are," Regina said, her face looking scared as hell. I nodded and left the room. I couldn't forget that I had her heart right there, and I could feel the fear oozing from it. Zelena would need a whole lot to snatch this heart away. Mom stayed behind with Regina, and the rest of us headed out. I had some serious planning to do.

Hook and I were at Granny's, sipping our drinks, and trying to figure out our next move when Belle burst in, holding a book and looking like she'd found gold. She was practically panting with excitement.

She flipped open the book to a page with a crazy circular diagram written in Elvish. I had no clue what it meant because I sure as heck couldn't read Elvish. "Okay, Belle, slow down. What did you find?"

"It's Zelena's plan," Belle blurted out, her excitement clear. "I've figured out what she's up to."

We all rushed over to Regina's place to spill the beans on Zelena's latest scheme. When we got there, Regina was duking it out with the ghost of Cora, and things were getting freaky.

"It looks like Cora had some unfinished business with Snow White," Regina explained, looking a bit frustrated.

While Regina and Mom dealt with the supernatural drama, Belle spilled the beans on Zelena's big plan. "Zelena's got her sights set on time travel."

Regina stood up, looking equal parts shocked and worried. "Are you sure about this? Time travel is no walk in the park."

Belle nodded, all serious. "Yeah, she's dead set on it. Brains, courage, and a resilient heart. Those are the ingredients I found in every time travel spell I dug up."

I couldn't help but smirk, thinking about how ironic it was that Zelena was trying to use Regina's heart, the one she'd probably rather avoid, for her little time-hopping adventure.

"But why does she want to go back in time? We have no idea what her ultimate goal is," I pondered aloud.

Mom, taking a breather after her supernatural encounter, gathered her strength and spoke in a hushed tone, "I know what she's up to. She... she didn't."

David, with a gentle tone, told her, "Take it easy, Snow."

"She didn't want to give up Zelena," Mom said, her voice trembling with the weight of her revelation. "She was forced to, by my mother, Princess Ava. She divulged a secret, just like I did."

I couldn't help but whisper, "Wait, I thought our family was the good guys."

Regina chimed in with her trademark realism, "Life is too messy for things to ever be that simple."

"So, you're saying if it wasn't for Snow's mother, Cora would have kept Zelena?" I asked for clarification.

Regina nodded solemnly, "She would have been tutored by Rumplestiltskin."

My mind raced to the implications, and I voiced my thoughts, "So that means...?"

"Zelena is going back to kill my mother," Mom said with a mix of determination and dread.

Regina's alarmed voice cut through the tense atmosphere, "You'll have never been born."

"I'm guessing this is where your help ends," I remarked, my gaze fixed on Regina.

"Think it through, Emma. That means you'll never be born, and neither will Henry," Regina pointed out.

Mom added another layer of complexity, "And on this different path, Regina, you may not exist either."

Hook tried to inject some humor into the situation, "It's a good thing no one's ever succeeded with this time travel nonsense."

Dad, deep in thought, began pacing the floor, "The baby. That's why none have succeeded. Somehow, someway, the baby is the key. Zelena went to a lot of effort to get next to our unborn child. That's what she's after."

Mom asked the pressing question, "What is she gonna do with it?"

I asserted confidently, "It doesn't matter; she's not gonna get it. We're gonna stop her. Since our baby's not born, she's stuck. We have what we need: time."

But Mom's face contorted with concern, "Just not very much of it." She reached down to feel her belly, and it was rock hard. Panic set in.

I quickly asked Killian to fetch my bag from the Bug and checked Mom. Her cervix was somewhat thinned out, but otherwise, she seemed okay. She went to talk to Regina, giving me a moment alone with my thoughts.

I couldn't help but overhear their conversation. Mom was saying something heartfelt to Regina, "Regina, I've seen what life has thrown at you. And you still fight against the darkness every single day. Sooner or later, your heart will find its way to happiness."

Regina's response was filled with a heavy resignation, "That doesn't feel possible."

My heart ached, knowing Regina's heart was beating inside me. But Mom continued with determination, "But it is. I know you, and you feel things deeply, with or without it. You feel things with your whole soul. Don't let anything hold you back."

I cleared my throat to announce my departure, "I'm about to go..."

Mom turned toward me, "Yeah..."

I looked back at Regina, and suddenly, she walked up to me, grabbed my collar, and kissed me. My breath caught in my throat as I kissed her back, feeling a rush of emotions. Inside me, my baby seemed to respond to the moment, and I couldn't help but wonder if Regina could feel it too. As she pulled away, I gasped for air, my heart racing and a thought crossed my mind: If Regina had her heart, would this kiss have broken the curse? Because in that moment, I was undeniably, irrevocably, and hopelessly in love.

The next morning, I bumped into Regina at the inn on the way to the Diner. A smile lit up my face as I greeted her and halted her progress, leaning in to give her a soft morning kiss. She leaned back against the wall, welcoming the gesture.

In a hushed tone, Regina murmured, "What do you see in me?" She followed up with another peck.

I responded, equally soft, "I see my best chance." I planted another gentle kiss on her lips and held onto her in the quiet hallway, away from prying eyes and ears. "Plus, you're a great kisser."

Regina couldn't help but smile. "Just wait until I actually have my heart back," she teased.

I chuckled, "Oh, you can take it back now."

She shook her head, placing her hand on my chest. "No, you're like a vault."

Curiosity got the best of me, "What's that like? Can you... "

"Feel?" Regina asked then nodded as she responded. "Yes, I can, just not fully. It's kind of hard to explain."

I reassured her, "It's okay, Regina. I can feel for the both of us." With that, she kissed me again, and this time, we lingered in the moment.

Suddenly, Henry cleared his throat, sneaking up behind us. Regina was taken by surprise, exclaiming, "Henry!"

I greeted him with a smile, "Hey, kid."

"Good morning," Regina said, her tension easing because I hadn't tensed up at his appearance.

"Morning," Henry replied, watching as Regina and I finally let go of each other, and she adjusted her demeanor. He excused himself with a polite, "Uh... Excuse me, Mom, Madam Mayor..." before walking away.

I couldn't help but chuckle, earning an elbow from Regina. "It's not funny."

"Considering my last relationship was with a flying monkey..." I retorted with a grin.

"Yes, glad your tastes have changed," I remarked casually as I observed the change in her demeanor. Our son walked away, and her heart, beating in my chest, ached. I didn't ask her if she was alright; I simply held her tight. "We'll find a way to make him remember."

"They are waiting for us. Let's go," she said, pulling away.

When we entered the room, Hook was conspicuously absent. "Can we get started? I don't have time to wait for the handless wonder," she quipped, turning to me and then David. "We have to figure out how to destroy my sister."

"Agreed, stopping Zelena's plan is a priority."

I walked over to a wingback chair and sat uncomfortably. "There's something about this plan that doesn't fit, Regina," I said.

"I'm the point of it, so she can take my life for herself," she stated.

"Yes, but why bring you back to Storybrooke? Why bring any of us?" I asked.

"Well, no one's ever succeeded at traveling through time..." Regina mused. "Perhaps something in this world makes it possible." She paused, touching her chin. "But what's almost as troubling is that she was able to cast the curse to bring us all here in the first place."

"Why is that?" I inquired.

"To do it, you have to give up the thing you love the most," Regina explained. She paused again. "From what I gathered, Zelena doesn't love much."

"Neither did you," I pointed out. "You managed."

She shot me an angry look.

"Zelena is smart and strategic; perhaps we discovered something in the missing year to stop her," David interrupted. Regina looked like she was about to cast another curse, and I instinctively folded my arms over my chest for protection.

"And the only way to stop us from interfering," Mom said, rolling her eyes at me before looking at David, "was to bring us back here and wipe our memories. So if we get our memories back, we might already know how to defeat her."

"We just need to break this curse," David said.

Mom looked at me. "Well, thank goodness we have a Savior."

"I would love to, but there's one problem," I replied.

"Last time, all it took was for me to believe in magic and kissing Henry. Since I've been back, I've done both, and nothing."

Regina gasped. "It's the belief," she said, looking at me. "Henry needs to believe. In this new life, he doesn't. We have to get him to believe again."

"So what, we put on a magic show?" I asked.

She gazed at me intently. "How did you believe?"

"The book. The storybook," I said. "That's what started Henry on his original path and what got you to believe. It's the key. In him believing, in him remembering. Everything."

"It's not necessarily a gift; he's been through a lot of tough stuff," I mentioned, not wanting my son to remember it all.

"And some good stuff," Regina mumbled. She narrowed her eyes at me, then turned to Snow. "Either way, it's our best bet."

Mom looked at me, knowing I didn't want Henry to remember. "She's right."

"I know," I said, then glanced at Regina. "Let's find it."

She stared at me for a long moment. I couldn't fathom why she hesitated. After all, she could cross the town line and come with us. But something held her back, and I couldn't quite understand it. Everything was about to change. Everything. I wouldn't be his mother anymore; Regina would be. And I knew he missed her, even if he couldn't remember it. The search for the book was on, and our first lead took us to Snow's closet.