LOST & FOUND

Prologue

Once upon a time, there lived a beautiful princess, though she did not know she was a princess. Through no fault of her own, the princess grew up living the wrong life, in the wrong world. Though she was destined for great happiness, her life was filled with great sorrow. This was not the destiny she was meant for, but instead, it was the destiny thrust upon her by powerful dark magic.

The princess grew up to be a savior, and despite her lonely harrowing childhood, she found her family and freed them from the Dark Curse, becoming the hero she was always meant to be. But there was always more dark magic, and always another threat lurking on the horizon, threatening to destroy everything she held dear. In her final act of brave heroism, she sacrificed herself to end the Curse of the Dark One, and free all the realms from the darkest magic in existence.

Fate is a funny thing, and it does not like to be trifled with. Once every century or so, there comes along a soul, with such light magic, and so pure of heart, that fate decides to give them a second chance. Such was the case for our princess savior.

Life was still not simple for the newly reborn princess, for even though she was now in the realm to which she belonged, her family now resided in a different world, and hence the babe was crying alone in the Enchanted Forest when a fairy took pity on her, and brought her home. But being an apparent orphan was not the only thing that plagued the tiny baby. Soon after returning home, the fairy discovered something very odd about this little one: for every month, she aged a year.

The fairy had never encountered such a thing, and she decided to do the only logical thing: send the child through a portal, to a world without magic… or so she thought.

Chapter One

It had been almost four months since Emma's death, and Henry was still not coping well. While life was slowly starting to return to normal - their new normal - Henry was still having a hard time processing the loss of his biological mother. He resented how unfair it was that he only had her in his life for a few short years, and even though he knew she had sacrificed herself to save everyone else, a part of him was still angry at her for leaving him.

On days when Regina had to work late, Henry didn't like to stay in the house alone, since being alone in an empty house gave him too much time to think. Instead, he would go visit his grandparents, and if they were busy, he would find another way to distract himself.

On this particular afternoon, David was working, and Mary Margaret had to stay late at the school for parent-teacher interviews. Regina promised him she would only be an hour late, but that still left three hours he had to be alone after school. He decided to go out for a walk to distract himself. He didn't really have a plan of where he was headed, and after a while, he found himself in the forest, staring at the old well.

Henry remembered the time, a few short years ago, when Emma had returned to him, through that very well. He breathed a heavy sigh, as his thoughts turned quickly to the events the night Emma died - which was exactly what he was trying not to do. His mind replayed the moments over and over. It happened so fast, Emma drove the dagger into Gold's heart, and then into her own, snuffing out the darkness and ending the Curse of the Dark One in one fell swoop, true savior-style.

Everyone reminded Henry that despite everything, Emma died a hero, but it didn't really help when all he could think of was how tormented her entire life had been. He had brought her to Storybrooke to bring back the happy endings, and he knew he would never be able to make peace with the fact that she had never gotten her own happy ending.

Just then, a small rustling sound pulled Henry out of his own head, and back into reality. He turned to see a tiny figure moving in the leaves, just behind the well.

Henry took a few steps closer to investigate. It looked like a child, but he wasn't quite sure.

"Hey," he called out.

The figure moved further away, apparently frightened.

"Hey, I'm not gonna hurt you," he said. He knelt down and saw watery green eyes peering at him from behind the shrubs and fallen tree branches. It was definitely a child. Unbeknownst to him, this very child had returned through the same well, just like she had returned to him before. How could possibly know, when this little Emma didn't even know, herself.

Henry held out his hand, but Emma backed away a bit. Those green eyes never left Henry's face.

"You don't need to be scared," Henry said. "Are you lost?"

The child didn't respond.

"Why don't you come out of there? I can help you if you're lost. Are you hungry? Or thirsty?"

Henry dropped his backpack to the ground and pulled out a chocolate bar, but the child didn't budge. He grabbed a bottle of water, and held it up. Emma's eyes fixated on the water.

"You are thirsty. Here, you can have it," Henry said, reaching the bottle towards the her. "It's ok."
Emma hesitated, but then slowly pushed through the shrubs, crawling towards Henry. Henry watched her emerge, with a mess of blonde curls and a tattered cotton dress. She was filthy, and scrawny, and Henry wondered just how long she had been out there.

The little girl made her way slowly toward the water, and Henry took off the cap, and placed the bottle on the grass. She took it and drank quickly, her eyes meeting Henry's again.

"Slow down," he cautioned. She drank half the bottle in just a few seconds, and then tried it hand it back to Henry.

"It's ok, you can have it. My name is Henry. What's your name?"

The little girl just stared.

"Are you lost? Where are your parents?"

She continued to stare, scrunching her face in confusion. Henry wondered if she was even understanding him.

"Where's your home?" He asked.

The little girl pointed at the well.

"You can't live in the well… Are you saying you live in the forest?" Henry asked. She nodded. She did live in a forest after all, just not this one.

Henry was relieved that she was communicating, but he wasn't sure exactly what to make of her answer. He knew the Merry Men had a camp in the woods, but to the best of his knowledge, none of them had a small daughter, and they were nowhere near the campsite.

"Are you all alone?" Henry asked.

She nodded again.

"Do you have parents? A mommy or a daddy?"

She shook her head and scooted a little closer to Henry, with her eyes on his chocolate bar.

Henry held up the chocolate bar. "You want this?" He asked. She nodded, and he pulled back the wrapper and handed it to her.
Henry watched her as she ate it quickly, holding the chocolate in one hand and still gripping the water tight in the other, like someone might grab it from her any second.

Henry glanced at his watch. He knew Regina would be home soon, and that it would be getting dark soon. "Do you want to come to my house with me? We have more food, if you're still hungry."

The little girl stared, unsure of what to do. Henry extended his hand, and smiled when she took it, tentatively. He helped her to her feet and began to lead the way back home.

When they were out of the woods, and back on the road, Henry noticed the little girl lagging behind. He looked back, and stopped walking when he realized she had no shoes on. The pavement was probably hurting her tiny feet.

"Hey, do you want me to carry you?" He asked. She nodded, and he scooped her up in his arms, surprised by how light she was.

Regina was already home by the time Henry returned. She had come to expect him to be out on nights she worked late, and didn't generally start calling around looking for him until it got dark.

Henry put Emma down and opened the door. She grabbed onto his hand as they went inside.

"Mom?" Henry called out.

"Oh, Henry! I'm in the kitchen!" Regina called back.

Henry turned to look down at the little girl, who was looking around the large house, with big, nervous eyes.

"Hey, it's ok," Henry tried to reassure her. She ducked behind him, grabbing onto his legs as Regina came around on the corner into the foyer.

"Hey, didn't you hear me?" Regina asked, as she headed toward Henry.

He felt little hands squeezing his legs harder. "Mom, wait," Henry said, nodding down at the child.

Regina stopped and followed his gaze, and then met Henry's eyes again. "Henry?" She asked, unsure where to even begin asking questions.

"I found her lost in the forest. She was all alone, and scared and hungry," Henry explained.

"Who is she?" Regina asked, looking back at the little girl who was now peeking at her around Henry's leg.

"I don't know. She hasn't actually said anything. But I couldn't just leave her there."

"No, of course not," Regina agreed.

Regina crouched down to the little girl's eye level, but maintained her distance a few feet back, so as not to scare her. "Hi there, Little One," she said with a smile, "my name's Regina. Can you tell me your name?"

Emma didn't answer, but took a small step away from Henry to get a better look at Regina, though she didn't let go of her legs just yet.

"That's ok, sweetheart, you don't have to talk. But I bet you're hungry, aren't you?"

Emma nodded.

"Well, good thing I've got dinner cooking," she said with smile. Regina reached out her hand. "Do you think you can come with me and get cleaned up while the lasagna bakes?"

She looked up at Henry, unsure. "It's ok, you can go with her," he assured her, "she's nice. She'll take good care of you."

Emma stepped around Henry's legs slowly and took Regina's hand. Regina stood up and looked at Henry. "Henry, there's boxes of your old clothes in the spare room, can you go find some pajamas for her to wear? The boxes are labelled by size, and she looks like she's about a size 4."

"Okay," said Henry.

"Oh, and, Henry, call your grandfather. She came from somewhere, someone's got to be looking for her," Regina added.

"Okay, Mom, I will," Henry said, as he headed in the direction of the spare room.

"Come with me, Little One," Regina smiled down at her, as she led her in the direction of the stairs.

The little girl stared at Regina with wide eyes as they ascending the stairs. When they reached the bathroom, Regina kneeled down beside the tub and turned on the water, adding bubbles to the bathwater.

"You are filthy, Little One," Regina said, as she helped the little girl out of her ripped dress. "How long were you out in the woods for?"

Emma just stared.

"You can talk to me, you know," Regina said as she lifted her into the bath. Her big green eyes never left Regina's as Regina washed the dirt and mud from her skin.

Regina couldn't help but think there was something familiar about those eyes. If I didn't know any better, I'd swear those were Emma's green eyes, she thought to herself, before quickly shaking the thought from her mind, knowing it was absurd.

"You have a forest growing in your hair," Regina laughed, as she starting picking twigs and leaves out of her golden curls.

Emma offered her a tiny smile, as she reached up to help pull the foliage out of her hair. She handed a stem dotted with small white flowers to Regina.

"Snowbells…" Regina said softly. She had never seen those growing in Maine, but she knew they were abundant in the Enchanted Forest. Could that be where she's from?

"Hey, Mom, I found these ones," Henry said, coming into the bathroom, holding out a set of light blue flannel pajamas.

"Those will work," Regina nodded, as she started washing Emma's hair. "Did you call your grandfather?"

"Yeah, he said no one has reported a child missing. He's going to come over to get a picture to put up a missing persons report... and, uh, Mom?"

"Yes, Henry?"

"Storybrooke doesn't have a foster system or anything... so I told him she could stay here, until they find her parents. I hope that's okay."

Regina smiled at him. She knew it was his innate instinct to help others, and she loved that about him. "That's fine, Henry. Can you check on the lasagna? I don't want it to burn."

Henry nodded and headed back to the kitchen.

"Alright, you're all clean now. Doesn't that feel better?" Regina asked, lifting her out of the tub and wrapping her in a towel. She couldn't look away from those big green eyes. "Where did you come from, Little One?"

Emma just stared.

"Mom!" Regina heard Henry call from downstairs, "the lasagna's done!"

"Let's get you dressed so we can have dinner, okay?" Said Regina, as she helped Emma into Henry's old pajamas. They were a little big, but good enough for tonight.

She took Emma by the hand and led her down the stairs toward the dining room.

"I grabbed my old booster seat from the spare room, too," Henry said, nodding toward the chair he had set up for Emma.

Regina smiled. "Smart thinking," she said, lifting the tiny Emma up into the booster chair. She looked like she was about three, four at the most, but she felt like she weighed nothing when Regina lifted her up.

Regina scooped some lasanga from the pan, cutting the noodles into smaller pieces so Emma wouldn't choke. Emma picked up her fork without prompting.

"She told me she lived in the forest," Henry commented, "but she knows how to use a fork."

"I thought she didn't talk to you?" Regina asked.

"She didn't," Henry said, as he filled his own plate. "I asked her where she lived and she pointed at the forest. I just assumed that's what she meant."

Regina nodded and looked back at Emma, who was eating in silence.

"What are we going to call her?" Henry asked.

"I don't know." Regina looked back at Emma, who was staring intently at Henry now.

"I was thinking, Hope," Henry said. "Do you like that name? Hope?"

Emma didn't respond, she just kept eating and staring.

"That will work for now," Regina nodded, "but we really need to figure out who she is, really, and where she came from."

"Yeah," Henry nodded, and looked back at Emma. "She kind of looks like her, doesn't she?"

"Henry..." Regina said softly, knowing exactly who he meant. She didn't want to tell him she saw it, too.

"Mom, I'm just saying… maybe it's just the eyes," Henry sighed.

"It's because you miss her. We tend to see the people we miss everywhere we look. And that's okay," Regina said, patting his hand.

Moments later, Regina heard a knock at the front door. "That must be David."

"I'll keep an eye on Hope," said Henry, smiling.

Emma scrunched up her nose.

"Henry, I'm not so sure she likes that name," Regina said, standing.

Emma looked up at her, nervousness creeping back into her eyes.

"I'll be right back, Little One," she assured her.

After catching David up on all they knew about the little girl so far - which wasn't much - Regina led him into the dining room to meet her. Emma looked up at him, anxiously.

"Little One," Regina said, crouching a bit beside Emma's chair to meet her at eye level, "this is David Nolan, and he's the Sheriff of Storybrooke. He's here to help us find your parents. Would you like to talk to him?"

Emma shook her head, no.

"That's alright, honey," David said, softly. "How about we take your picture, instead? It will help us to find anyone who recognizes you."

David pulled out a camera, and Emma looked at it, perplexed. Her eyes were wide as David lifted the camera, and Emma began to scream when the flash went off.

Well, at least we know she has a voice, Regina thought to herself as she instinctively picked Emma up from her booster chair. "Shh, it's ok, it was just a light."

Emma wailed louder and squirmed away from Regina until she had no choice but to put her down before she fell. As soon as Emma's feet hit the floor, she took off running in the other direction.

"Maybe we should try this again tomorrow?" David suggested. Regina nodded, as she headed to follow Emma up the stairs.

She's fast, Regina thought to herself, as she looked around the hall and saw no sign of the child. She noticed the door to Henry's room cracked open slightly, and walked up to it, quietly. She pushed the door open without a sound, and crept inside.

She looked around inside Henry's room, in corners and under the bed, but there was no sign of the child. She was about to check another room, when she thought again and turned back, opening the closet door.

"There you are," she said softly, when she was met by terrified eyes. Emma was crouching in the corner, squeezing tight to a blanket. Regina stepped forward and the little girl pulled the blanket up, hiding her face.

Regina crouched down, and realized that it was Emma's white baby blanket the child was clutching. Henry had wanted to keep it, because he knew it had been special to her. For the first couple months following Emma's death, Henry had slept with it on his bed. A couple weeks ago, he had folded it up neatly and placed it on a low shelf in his closet. Regina had thought that must mean he was making progress in the grieving process, and healing.

Regina was sure it couldn't just be a coincidence that this little blonde-haired child with Emma Swan's eyes, had just happened to grab Emma's blanket.

"Emma?" she asked, tentatively.

Emma slowly lowered the blanket, big green eyes meeting Regina's again.

A small smile started to spread across Regina's lips. "It is you, isn't it?"

Emma didn't respond, and Regina searched her eyes for any clue. She knew she couldn't tell Henry, not until she knew for sure. She wasn't even sure how it was possible, but everything inside her told her this child was Emma Swan, somehow.

"It's alright, Little One," she said, finally. "You don't have to be scared. I'm going to figure this all out, I promise."

Regina reached out her hand slowly, and softly stroked Emma's cheek. "Do you think you can come back out now, Little One?" she asked. "Sherriff Nolan left, it's just you, me and Henry now, like before."

Emma slowly crawled out from her little hiding spot, never taking her eyes off Regina. Regina took her hand, and led her back down the stairs. Emma stayed a little behind her, peeking around her legs, no doubt making sure the Sherriff was really gone.

Regina put her back in her booster chair, where Emma picked at the rest of her dinner, not really eating very much, despite Regina's gentle prompting.

"I think she's too upset to eat," Henry commented, looking at the child with concern.

"I know," Regina nodded. She wished she knew how to break through to the little girl, and figure out what in the hell was going on.

"Maybe a movie might make her feel better?" Henry suggested.

Emma didn't seem to react to the suggestion, but Regina agreed. She let Emma down from her chair, and brought her into the living room with Henry, where he picked out a movie to put on. Emma crawled up onto the couch, watching him intently, as Regina went to clear the dishes and clean up from dinner.

For the first time since Emma had killed Rumple, Regina actually wished he were still around. He would know if this sort of reincarnation was even remotely possible. She considered the idea that she could go to the Blue Fairy about it, but she didn't want to suffer the embarrassment if she was way off-base with her theory. She knew this was one she was going to have to figure out on her own.

When Regina returned to the living room, she was surprised that of all movies Henry could have chosen, he put on Annie. Emma was standing, just inches from the TV, with her head cocked slightly to the side, in apparent confusion.

"Sweetheart, don't stand too close to the TV. You'll hurt your eyes," Regina warned. Emma turned back to glance at her, and then returned to staring at the TV, without moving back.

"Henry, why would you pick this movie?" Regina asked, thinking it was slightly inappropriate to put on a movie about orphans for a child who very well could be one herself. She remembered Emma once commenting how much she hated this movie, and as Carol Burnett's Miss Hannigan strutted drunkenly across the screen, Regina had to wonder if this rang true to the various group homes Emma had been in.

"I thought she might like the singing," Henry shrugged.

Regina and Henry watched as Emma started tapping her finger on the TV screen. She looked back at them for a moment, with a troubled look on her face, and turned back to the TV, tapping harder on the dancing orphans singing about their hard-knock life. Regina wondered if perhaps she had never seen a TV before.

"What is she doing?" Henry asked.

"I don't know," Regina shook her head, watching Emma. If she didn't know better, she would swear the child was trying to get Little Orphan Annie's attention, through the screen. "Henry, where exactly did you find her?"

"In the forest, by the well. The one that…" Henry let his voice trail off, but Regina knew exactly which well he meant.

"Do you go there often?" she asked softly, turning back to her son.

Henry shrugged. "Sometimes… I go there, and I think about the time she came back to me."

Regina sighed. Since Emma's death, Henry never referred to her by name, never even said 'my mom'. It was always just 'she' or 'her'. Archie warned her that it was a sign that Henry was still stuck in the denial phase, but Regina knew better than to push him to talk about her, if he wasn't ready.

"That well was once a portal," Regina said, looking back at Emma again.

Henry nodded, following her train of thought. "You think she came through it?"

"It's possible. She had snowbells in her hair."

"So?" Henry asked.

"Have you ever seen snowbells in Storybrooke?"

Henry thought for a second, and realized that he hadn't. "No," he shook his head.

"They don't grow here. They grow in this world, but not in Storybrooke. She couldn't have come from any place else, here, because she couldn't have crossed the town line; Storybrooke is still invisible to outsiders. But snowbells also grow in the Enchanted Forest."

"If she's from there, it would explain why she's confused by the TV, and why she was afraid of the camera flash," Henry nodded.

"And why no one has reported a missing child," Regina added.

"I didn't think there was anyone left in the Enchanted Forest. I thought everyone came over with the last curse?

"I thought everyone came over with the first curse," Regina shrugged. "It's a big place. People escaped the first time, we have to assume that people could have escaped the second time, too."

"When I asked her where she lived, she pointed at the well," Henry said. "I thought she meant she lived in the forest, but maybe she was telling me she came through the well."

"We need to figure out how to get her to talk," Regina said, as Emma turned to look back at them again. She walked back towards the couch, pouting, apparently giving up on the reaching the tiny people behind the screen.

Emma climbed onto the couch, squeezing herself between Regina and Henry, scowling at the TV.

"Turn it off, Henry," Regina nodded toward the TV. Henry did so, and Emma seemed to visibly relax when the screen went black. She yawned and leaned against Regina. "I think someone's sleepy," Regina smiled down at her.

Emma reached up and started playing with the sleeve of Regina's shirt, which took her a little aback. Henry used to do the same thing when he was tired. Regina put her arm around Emma and started rubbing her back, the way she had done with Henry when he was a child. Emma's eyelids started to droop.

Regina waited until the child was completely asleep, before picking her up to carry her upstairs. She didn't want to incite another melt down. She considered for a moment laying her down in her own bed, so she could be near her in the night, in case anything happened, but decided that might not be the most appropriate choice with a child she didn't really know. She had to keep reminded herself, that even if this really was Emma Swan, she probably didn't have any memories of Regina, Henry, or Storybrooke, at this age.

Regina layed Emma down in the big bed in the guest bedroom, and tucked her in. She left the hall light on, and left the door open, so the room wasn't dark.

Before leaving the room, Regina sat on the bed and stroked Emma's soft blonde curls for a while. Though the child had been filthy when Henry brought her home, she could tell that she had been well-cared for, at one point. She wondered if she had a family in the Enchanted Forest, desperately searching for their lost little angel, and it made her heart hurt. She wished her magic was strong enough to allow her to look through realms, as Emma's had been.

When Regina finally went to bed herself, she left her own bedroom door open as well, so she could hear if the little girl needed her in the night.

After a few short hours of sleep, she awoke to the sound of muffled whimpering, coming from the guest bedroom. She got up and peeked into the room. Emma was crying softly in her sleep. In the hallway, she noticed the light flickering a little, and wondered if that was another clue to this child's true identity. It looked a lot like magic, to her.

Regina went in and sat back down on the bed, and gently shook Emma's shoulders. Emma's eyes flew open, and she backed away quickly, pulling her knees to her chest as she stared at Regina through those big, watery eyes.

"It's ok, Little One," Regina said, maintaining her distance from the clearly distraught child. "You were having a dream. It's alright."

Emma looked around the room, and then back at Regina. She dropped her knees, and scooted a little closer, still sniffling from crying.

"Are you scared?" Regina asked.

Emma nodded, hugging her arms around herself, as she moved a little closer.

"Do you want me to stay with you, until you fall asleep again?" Regina asked, reaching her hand out to lightly brush Emma's hair away from her face. Emma flinched a little, but relaxed almost instantly, as she nodded again.

Regina tucked Emma back in under the covers, before laying down beside her, on top of the blankets. She stroked Emma's curls as the child closed her eyes again. Regina stayed where she was, watching Emma sleep, long after the child had drifted off again.

"Emma," Regina whispered to the sleeping child, "if that's you in there, please help me figure this out. Henry needs you back."

In the morning, Regina woke to something rustling beside her. It took her a moment to realize that she had fallen asleep in the guest bedroom next to the little blonde, who was now wide awake, and staring at her.

"Good morning, Little One," Regina said, still half-asleep. "What am I going to put you in?"

Henry had brought the whole box of old clothes marked "size 4" into the guest bedroom when Regina was bathing Emma the night before. Regina went over and opened the box, finding a pair of overalls and a plain white shirt.

"This will work for now," she commented, turning back to the child who was watching her intently. "But we'll need to get you some clothes of your own."

Regina helped Emma changed into the clothes, before putting her blonde hair into two braided pigtails. She couldn't help but notice how adorable she was, and a fleeting thought crossed her mind that she hoped they wouldn't find her parents, and Regina could keep her. As soon as she thought it, she immediately hated herself for it, and brushed the idea out of her mind.

"Shall we get breakfast?" she asked, smiling at the child. She was getting used to never getting a response, but she kept talking in the hopes that one of these times, she would. She took Emma by the hand, and led her down the stairs, where Henry was already sitting at the kitchen island. He hadn't been up this early on a weekend in months, and the sight of his smile when she entered the kitchen melted Regina's heart. Even if this little girl wasn't the Savior incarnate, Regina noted that having her here was still having a positive effect on Henry.

Regina made French toast for breakfast, and smiled when Emma's eyes lit up, as she put them in front of her.

"Mom, can I take Hope outside to play after breakfast?" Henry asked.

Regina watched Emma scrunch up her face at that name, again. "Henry, I really don't think she likes that name," Regina laughed.

"Well, we need to call her something. You can't just call her 'Little One' forever," Henry teased.

Regina sighed. "Henry, she's been here less than twenty-four hours, please don't get too attached, okay? I'm not going to call her 'Little One' forever, because she's not going to be here forever." Regina hated watching Henry's smile fade, but she also knew how devastating it would be for him to lose another person he had become close to, at this point. This boy had already lost so many people in his life.

"I know, I didn't mean it like that. I just meant, she needs a name," Henry said.

"And she has one. Eventually she will tell us, okay?" Regina replied.

Henry nodded, and looked back at Emma, who was watching him silently. "So can I take her in the backyard to play?" he asked again.

"I think that would be good," Regina smiled, "just keep an eye on her. Remember, she's little."

"I will," Henry promised. "Do you want to come outside, Little One?" Henry asked. Emma's smiled and nodded. Henry got up and helped her out of the booster chair, leading her toward the sliding glass doors leading to the backyard.

"Leave the door open, Henry. Let some fresh air in," Regina called after him. She really just wanted to be able to hear them outside, but she didn't want Henry to think she was hovering.

Henry nodded, and did as he was asked.

Regina started clearing the dishes, as she heard her phone ring from the other room. When she went to grab it, she say David's number appear on the screen. Her heart sank a little, expecting the inevitable call saying they had located the child's parents.

"Hello?" Regina asked.

"Hey, I just wanted to check in, and see if you had any success getting the little girl to talk?" David said.

Regina sighed in relief, and instantly berated herself in her own head for being relieved. "No, not a word." She replied. She decided it was best to keep the 'Emma-thing' from the Charmings as well, until she had something solid to go on. There was no point in getting everyone's hopes up, if it was to lead to more inevitable heartbreak down the line.

"Ok. I showed her picture around a bit last night, and we got nothing. Mary Margaret said there are no kids unaccounted for from the school, but that little girl looks like she might be too young to be registered in school anyway. Are you still good to keep watching her, for the time being?"

"Yes, absolutely," Regina replied, trying not to sound too eager. "Henry's enjoying having her here. She's keeping him… distracted." She knew David would know what she meant by that, without her bringing up his dead daughter's name into the conversation. Regina always tip-toed around the subject of Emma with the Charmings, knowing that even though she didn't cause Emma's death, she did cause them to loose twenty eight years of time with their daughter.

"Ok, good. I'll be in touch. Call me if you get anything out of her, ok?" David responded.

"David, there is something," Regina said. "Henry found her by that well in the forest, the one that returns things once lost. I think we need to consider the possibility that she came through there, from another realm."

David paused for a moment, before responding. "Ok, let me talk to Blue about that, and see what she thinks. I'll call you later."

Regina sighed as she hung up the phone. She really wasn't particularly interested in Blue's input into any of this, but she supposed she didn't really have any other choice in the matter.

"Gina?" she suddenly heard an unfamiliar little voice call from the other room. She hurried over, and found Emma standing in the door way, her face stricken with panic.

"Sweetheart what's wrong?" she asked, crouching down in front of her.

"Henny," Emma said, sniffling, pointing through the open door. Regina looked past her, to where Henry laid, unconscious, on the grass.

"Oh, my God!" Regina cried, standing up and running to the backyard. "Henry!" She fell to her knees in front of him, shaking him. He didn't respond. She tried not to panic, as she waved one hand slowly over his head, a purple aura of magic spreading from her fingers.

Moments later, Henry opened his eyes, and Regina breathed a heavy sigh of relief. She helped him sit up, and pulled him into a tight embrace. "Henry, what happened?"

Henry pulled away, and looked up at the patio, where Emma stood. "We were just playing, and… Mom, she has magic. I'm sure she didn't mean it, but she knocked me out."

Regina turned back to look at Emma, who looked more terrified than ever as she stared back at them. Regina stood to help Henry up.

"Mom, I'm fine," Henry insisted, "really."

Regina gave him a small smile, and turned back to Emma again, who chose that moment to take off running back into the house.

"Emma!" Regina called out, no thinking.

"Mom?" Henry asked. Regina cringed. "What's going on? Why did you call her… that?"

Regina turned back to Henry. "Henry, I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I don't even know if it's possible, but I have a feeling…." Regina's voice trailed off. How could she tell her grief-stricken son that she thought this child was his deceased other mother? It sounded too insane to say out loud.

"You think it's her?" Henry asked, his voice barely whisper.

"Henry, I don't know. It doesn't make any sense, but still… I didn't want to tell you, because I'm probably wrong."

"I don't think you are," Henry said. "She has her eyes. And she came back to me through that well once before."

Regina sighed. This is exactly what she didn't want to happen. "Henry, listen to me: I don't want you to get your hopes up, okay? And please, you need to keep this between us, until we figure it out."

Henry nodded, "I will Mom. I promise."

"I need to go find her. Are you going to be okay?" Regina asked, placing her hands on her son's shoulders, and looking into his eyes.

"Yeah, Mom, I'm fine. I swear."

Regina gave Henry another quick hug, before heading inside to look for the missing little girl. She wasn't hard to find, Regina just had to follow the flickering lights down the hallway upstairs. She saw the lights flickering inside her own bedroom, and figured Emma must be in there.

On a cursory glance around the room, she saw a little foot sticking out from under her bed. She dropped to the floor and looked underneath, and she was met by big, scared eyes.

"Hey, there, Little One," she said, softly.

Emma whimpered in response, and Regina could see tears building up in her eyes.

"It's ok, Sweetheart. Henry's fine. Everything is alright. You can come out."

"Are you mad?" Emma whispered.

Regina smiled, relieved that the little girl was finally talking. "No, Sweetheart, I'm not mad. It was an accident. Can I tell you a secret?"

Emma nodded, and crawled a little closer.

"I have magic, too," Regina said, holding up her hand and letting soft flickers of purple haze drift up from her fingertips.

Emma smiled.

"And I know it can feel hard to control magic when you're little, but I can help you," Regina assured her. "Do you want to come out from under there?"

Emma nodded, and Regina moved back to give her room to crawl out. Regina sat up, and Emma fell onto her lap, wrapping her little arms around Regina's waist, and resting her head on her abdomen.

Regina breathed a sigh of relief, as she rubbed her back softly. "It's going to be okay, Little One. I promise."