
Chapter 1
Portal of Secrets
Chapter One
Disclaimers::: I do not own OUAT or its characters, just my colorful imagination. Now, this is a story where Roni/Regina is in Hyperion Heights and gets her memories back. ALL of them. Just what else happened before the curse separated everyone? Let's find out…
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While in Hyperion Heights, Roni was going about her business, working at her bar, when she got the surprise of her life. She got her memories back, thanks to Ivy, who was Victoria's daughter. She began remembering Henry when he was younger and getting ready to go off to college. She remembered his blonde mother and what was revealed to her just before another curse struck them.
Roni gasped as she sat back, her chest heaved with every memory that rushed into her mind. Henry as a baby, growing up, Henry running away and bringing her with him. Emma... The way she said hi when they first met. The love and hate relationship she had with the blonde. The fact she had never told the blonde her true feelings. And then the hidden memories came rushing to the surface. Memories she was not aware of having before. Memories of another life lost. Roni… uh, Regina began crying in surprise at the images coming to her.
Ivy smiled as she moved to turn the closed sign around and shut off the neon open light. She was there to make sure Regina remembered everything. She moved back to sit next to the owner of the bar. "Feels good to remember, doesn't it?"
Regina turned to look at the young lady next to her. "How long has it been?" She asked in a whisper.
"Not too long, maybe 4, almost 5 months. But that's just for here, which ironically enough, runs at the same time as your Storybrooke. But as for Ravenscroft, it has been about 10 or 12 years." She watched the older woman react to this. "And then there's Misthaven. It's been 18 years there. I think you are starting to realize certain things, aren't you?"
Regina stood up on trembling legs as she gripped the bar to steady herself. "And the Enchanted Forest?" She whispered.
"The first time? Or the second time?" Ivy asked. "The third, perhaps?" She smiled, enjoying Regina's reaction.
Regina's eyes grew wide. "What the hell is happening? Why does this keep happening to us? What about… Emma… I need Emma!" She reached for her phone.
Just then, Lucy ran in and started talking excitedly about something she found in the storage space where her grandmother worked. "I found a bunch of letters!!! And see! I was right!!! Everything in Dad's book is true!!!" She shoved the letters in Roni's hands. "You're really Regina and Emma is real! You wrote love letters to each other!!! There are a bunch that MY wicked grandmother kept hidden!" She handed Regina another thick file full of other mementos and other important documents.
"That doesn't surprise me. Mother has always been wicked! I know I wasn't always nice either, but that's because Mother never loved me. Guess what Lucy? Roni or should I say, Regina remembers everything now." Ivy winked.
Lucy was thrilled with the news as she ran over to Regina and hugged her grandmother. "You need to call Emma and have her come here! And you should know Grandma Victoria isn't really your mother, Ivy… Drizella… she kidnapped you from your real parents to keep them from finding out the truth… and that also goes for your missing sister."
Ivy frowned as she looked at the kid. "What do you mean? Mother isn't my mother? Anastasia isn't her daughter either?" She was taken aback by this bit of news.
Regina looked through the contents of the folder. She found things in there that turned her stomach and the memories just kept coming. She needed a break from all this craziness. Knowing she'd had to live through one curse after another, absolutely pissed her off!!! Their lives had been royally messed with, one time too many! Enough was enough! She had every intention of ending this curse once and for all. She had a feeling Victoria was behind everything. And if she wasn't, she would find out sooner or later.
Lucy could see the determination on her grandma's face. "If only we can get Dad to believe again." She had such a wistful look that shouldn't be on a child's face.
Regina tried to get through to Emma but managed to get a hold of Ruby instead. She left a message for Emma, stating it was an emergency. They needed to meet as soon as possible, the sooner, the better.
Just then, Regina remembered her sister. "Zelena. I need to know where she is. Maybe together, we can figure this out. At least until Emma gets here."
Regina saw Jacinda come in with Henry. Now that Regina got all her memories back, she was sad because she had not known who he was when he first showed up.
Jacinda was there to pick up her daughter. Regina then recalled everything Lucy had said to her, regarding her parents forgetting each other. She pulled Lucy aside and whispered, "Don't worry, dear. We will help them to remember." She promised, her heart swelled with love for her granddaughter.
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As soon as Regina and Henry found Zelena and returned back to the bar, a few days later, Robyn and Alice arrived in Emma's yellow bug. Regina's heart nearly jumped out of her chest when she saw that familiar yellow death-trap of a car.
Robyn moved to hug her mother, moving into Zelena's arms. "I missed you, Mom. Aunt Emma said we could borrow her car." She then smiled at her Aunt Regina, loving it that she had surprised her Aunt. "Aunt Emma got your message. She had to finish helping Lily with something and she will come here right after she's finished." She turned to look at Alice who smiled.
Alice stepped forward. "Hi, I'm Tilly but my name's actually Alice." She reached forward to shake her hand.
Regina was confused. "Lily? What is so important that she has to…" She looked at Alice? There was something awfully familiar in her face. "Hello, Alice. It's nice to meet you."
Robyn smiled. "Since Aunt Emma found a group of dragons… they are trying to find Lily's Dad. She wanted to find out who he is."
Regina nodded. "Alright, I just hope she gets here, the sooner the better. I have a lot to tell her." She had a lot to think about. The multiple curses they had lived through, the missing times together they were not aware of having. Regina bit her lips as she thought about the newer memories she had received. She looked at Drizella erm… Ivy, still unsure of what she was feeling right now. She looked at the clock and was suddenly aware of all the times they had lost and then she felt anger starting to bubble up to the surface. "Is Victoria responsible for what happened? Rumpelstiltskin? Who else?" She tried not to lose her cool, but she was cutting it pretty close.
Ivy sighed. "That's why I did this behind her back. I was so angry when I first found out. You can thank the black fairy for that, Rumple too. And of course your mother." She crossed her arms over her chest. "And well, the Charmings also messed up Mo...Emma's life big time."
Regina's eyes grew wide at that little slip. She saw the way Zelena was watching them very intently as was Robyn.
"What is going on, Roni?" Henry asked. "Why are you talking about fictional characters in my book?" He asked.
Regina looked at her son wistfully. "Because everything you wrote is real. It all happened. Emma is your biological mother. I adopted you. And Emma remembers nothing. Neither do you. Because we are living through another curse. This is my sister, Zelena, and your cousin, Robyn." She then looked at Ivy as it hit her hard. With the following words that came out of her mouth, she finally accepted that this was happening. She didn't want to deny what happened anymore. "This is Ivy, your sister."
Three jaws dropped simultaneously, while Alice found this to be amusing. Zelena's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as shock turned to curiosity. "Who knocked you up, Sis?"
Ivy and Regina replied at the exact same time as they moved closer to one another. "Emma." They hugged each other tightly.
Zelena laughed then. "You and Emma? Who would have thunk it?"
"And we need to find my twin sister, Anastasia. She is missing." Ivy continued as Regina wiped her tears away.
Regina cursed under her breath. "As soon as your mother gets here, we will need to catch her up on what happened. And then we will find your sister." She promised as she kissed her daughter's forehead.
"I have a sister… um, sisters?" Henry was still reeling from what he learned. "You're my mom? I need to sit." He moved to sit on a barstool. "A drink would be nice right now."
Zelena found her voice. "I have nieces that are twins?"
Ivy nodded. "Yes. Twins do run in the family."
Regina nodded. "That's right, they do. David had a twin brother…" She remembered.
Ivy frowned and shook her head. "No, I wasn't talking about him, not even close. Mom has a twin sister. Like I was saying before, the Charmings messed with Emma's life big time. She doesn't even know it yet. Oh boy, her real parents will be royally pissed off and so will her sister, and most of all, so will Emma. Especially after going through all the trouble of finding Lily in the first place. You remember how pissy mom got with the Charmings for that." Ivy had a real smug smile on her face which reminded them of Regina when she was like that.
Henry frowned. "How do you know about all that? Who told you?"
Ivy smirked at her brother. "You did when we were in the Enchanted forest. You gave your daughter the original Once Upon a Time book. And when the curse struck again, she gave it to me. And Lucy left you a drawing of her version of Once Upon a Time. You used that drawing as the cover of your newest best-seller. And well, Lily told me all about Emma and how she went and found her after getting into a fight with the Charmings. How Maleficent asked for her help. But they didn't know there was another curse on top of it all… one I found out about and then when I found out the whole truth, I had to get to Mama and make her remember everything else. Except there is more to the story." Ivy stopped talking. "I need water please."
Regina got them all drinks. "What are you talking about? More to what story?" She asked.
Henry frowned, reeling from many things as he drank his beer. "Lucy was right all along? She is my daughter? I'm a dad?"
Regina nodded and smiled. "Yes, you are. Don't say it." She lifted a finger.
Henry grinned sheepishly, "You're a grandmother."
Regina sighed. "Are you trying to give me grey hair?"
"Can we get back to the story here?" Ivy asked, getting their attention back to what happened.
Regina nodded. "Alright dear, you have our attention. You're saying there was another curse? What curse?"
Ivy sighed. "The curse that was placed on Mom ever since before she was born." Upon seeing the look on Regina's face, Ivy added quickly. "Nothing to do with the curse you brought about. No. This curse was placed on her when she was stolen from her biological mother's womb and placed into another's womb."
Gasps were heard, coming from everyone within the group.
"And then Snow White gave birth to Emma." Regina finally caught on to what Ivy was trying to tell her. "Then that means... Emma doesn't belong to the Charmings."
"Now you're finally getting the gist of it, mama." Ivy smiled.
Henry looked at his sister, his curiosity piqued. "Do you know who her real parents are?"
Ivy nodded. "I do. Which is why I need Mom here so I can tell you both together. She is going to need her wife's support. Do you remember when you first married her? Or when you first fell in love? Or what the real reason is for you bringing that curse in the first place? Do you have any idea how many curses you lived through? Or what Captain Hook did to her?"
Regina was reeling as she realized what Ivy was getting at. "There is more to what you are telling me? I do remember the first time I saw her. But how can that be when she wasn't born until before my curse took everyone to Storybrooke?"
Ivy smiled, looking at Zelena before she looked at Regina. "Time travel, of course. Only she doesn't remember. That time she traveled back with Killian? That wasn't the only time she has gone back. That was probably something she did many times. Don't you remember?" Ivy watched her mother digest what she was saying. "Time travel was something she could do naturally. You both have other children together." She then looked at Henry and chuckled knowingly.
Henry was surprised. "Mom can time travel? Cool!" He got in touch with his younger self for a moment.
Regina felt as if she were starting to get a migraine as she tried sorting through her new memories. She remembered Maleficent could travel through portals and do time travel too. Emma would need to be very powerful to do something like that. "I think I will need a few days or a few weeks to sort through all my memories and try making sense out of it all. "How many children do we have?" She tried to remember those important details. She had yet to register what Ivy was saying or implying.
Just then, the door opened and Emma entered. "I would like some water, please. Jumping through the last portal made me very thirsty… Hey Regina!" Emma looked like she was ready to pass out.
Everyone went out of their way to bring Emma to a chair so she could sit down.
Regina was so glad to see the blonde, but at the same time, concerned for her well-being. "Emma!" She grabbed her an ice-cold sprite, knowing it would refresh her more than water at this point. "You have no idea how happy I am to see you!" She hugged her tightly and almost kissed her when an unwelcome visitor showed up.
Killian appeared. He came in, looking at everyone who was staring at him. "What?! I'm her husband! I was parking the car we borrowed from David. I hope this place serves Rum."
Regina gave the pirate a cold hard look. "Or so you would have us believe. Your marriage to Em-ma is invalid." She wouldn't let the pirate get any closer to her wife. She was standing protectively between them.
Emma looked at the brunette in a mix of confusion and surprise. "Regina? What are you saying? Why would you..." She couldn't begin to understand why Regina said that. She saw the way she was standing. A part of her realized she liked it and she licked her lips.