Cursed Hearts

Rude Awakening

He awoke to the blaring of his alarm clock, brutally letting him know that another day of school was waiting for him whether he liked it or not. Shutting it off with a groan, the fifteen year old sat up in his bed, preparing himself for whatever could be thrown at him that day like he always did. Why he couldn't just get those nagging thoughts out of his head and be positive was beyond him.

Throwing on a clean shirt and running a comb through his hair, Roland quickly became suspicious of how quiet his house was for a Wednesday morning.

"Caroline!" He shouted towards the hallway, "get up or you'll be late for school!"

There was no response.

Starting for her bedroom, Roland froze in his tracks when he saw the hall closet open, items strewn all over the floor.

"Mom? Dad?" He called urgently, racing towards their bedroom to find it completely empty. Their bedsheets were disheveled, evidence that they had both been there just hours before. Anxiety was quickly coursing through his body as thoughts began flashing across his mind.

"Caroline!"

His shout was a last resort; part of him knew she wasn't going to be there. He was right. In place of his sister was a note, in somebody's handwriting that wasn't recognizable. As Roland began to read the note, he quickly became too nauseous to concentrate on the words. He could've been standing in her bedroom for five minutes or five hours- all he could do was concentrate on his breathing and clear his mind. Eventually he once again felt the ground beneath him. Taking another breath, he headed swiftly towards the stairs and out the front door, breaking into a run down the middle of the street. If anyone could help him, it was Emma Swan.

--

A brilliant blue sky filled his vision, one so bright and daunting that it filled him with an absolute dread. Shooting upwards, Robin took in his new surroundings as best he could. Caroline was asleep next to him on a heap of grass, her peaceful demeanor painfully reminding him of the previous night. As if to deepen his doubts about the events that had happened just a few hours prior, the red headed woman appeared in his line of vision. She was awake and running a brush through her hair. He was up in an instant, anger mixing with his confusion as he came towards her.

"You better start talking," he said quietly through gritted teeth, yanking her to her feet. She then waved her hand effortlessly, creating a field of magic around them.

"Yell at me as loudly as you want, it's soundproof," Zelena said nonchalantly, before shoving him away from her. "But enough with the manhandling- I could destroy you if I wanted to. Just listen- I gave Caroline a false memory from last night to help her adjust to all of this- she thinks you came into her room and told her that I needed her help. See, I'm really not all bad-"

"Hold on, you're telling me that she willingly agreed to 'save the day' under false memories that you gave her, shortly after trapping her mother in Heaven knows where? You're a psychopath, that's what you are!"

Her eyes darkened. "I didn't need to bring you along here, Caroline is all I need to get what I want- I just thought it would be easier for her if you were here. You're just a petty thief, or rather, that's what you were before turning into Mr. Domestic bliss."

"Do you think Caroline will do anything for you once she knows what you did to her mother? She's not from this world, it's too dangerous-"

"Are you going to be the one to break the awful news to her?" Zelena challenged, "it might just break that innocent heart of hers. And she belongs in this realm, it's where she can begin to accept who she is. You really thought you could hide that from her?"