Cursed Hearts

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She was surrounded by the familiar dark green of trees, the sun providing full brightness from above. Pavement was felt beneath her feet, and salt wafted in the air. In that instant, she knew their way back worked- against all odds, it actually worked.

Exclamations of excitement could be heard from Will, then Ruby, then her father. Glancing around at her surroundings, Caroline's heart soon skipped a beat as she whipped around, met only with the bold orange line signifying the edge of town.

"Zelena?" The ten year old called out, receiving nothing but silence in return.

"She's... gone," Robin marveled, seeming just as shocked over the whole ordeal as his daughter.

"Guess she didn't want to take that prison offer after all," Will said, "you think she's out there wrecking havoc with her magic?"

The answer to his question was painfully unclear.

"She couldn't get us closer to town?" Ruby grumbled, the first out of the four to pioneer forward down the road towards civilization. Everyone else trailed behind, leaving the mystery of the wicked witch within the forest.

Their steps quickened as the seconds passed, the promise of what lay ahead too exciting to waste any more time.

Caroline was soon enveloped by the familiar markings of Storybrooke, her heart brimming with excitement as she gazed upwards at the clock tower, still ticking away like nothing had changed. The four most heavily talked about people in town suddenly reappearing after so many weeks quickly gained attention- confused yet thrilled glances, all from familiar faces.

As they continued farther down their street, they broke out into a run, the enthusiasm beyond control. When the white paneled house came into view, Caroline's emotions began to take hold of her. They were absolutely exhausted, yet somehow the strength to push further remained. Within seconds they were standing on their front lawn, the snow vanished and replaced with sodden grass beneath.

"Regina! Roland!" Robin shouted, his voice carrying strongly between heaving breaths.

Time seemed to slow as the events began taking place- everything she had dreamt and pleaded for was finally happening.

The door swung open, revealing her mother- her beautiful mother- eyes wide with shock as she surveyed the scene before her. Caroline had no time to react before she felt her secure embrace. It was a whirlwind of hugs and cries; nobody could find the words to properly capture what they were feeling.

Caroline glanced upwards and watched her parents hold one another tightly, tears flowing freely. With that brought a new level of comfort inside- one more thing was right in the world once again.

She broke out into a smile when she caught sight of Henry nearly tackling their uncle in an embrace, Will rebuking by telling him "I told you so" over and over again. Roland almost looked taller, with a certain glow about him that the girl couldn't quite place.

Emma's yellow bug was quick to arrive, followed by David's battered pickup truck. Soon, there were people everywhere- family, friends, and neighbors. Caroline had never felt more loved.

There was soon a crowd of familiar faces on their front lawn. Everyone wanted to know what had happened with the 'mysterious crazy witch' that had kidnapped her. With both her emotions and physicality depleting quickly, she had absolutely no idea how to answer each time the question came her way. She was more than thankful when Granny approached her, sending some of her exhaustion.

"You've sure had an eventful day," she mused, easily welcoming the girl into her arms. She held her tightly, remembering back to when they communicated through the looking glass- it was nice to know that those desperate times were behind them.