The moment she felt his lips brush against hers, everything started flooding back to her. Every memory she had lost, the ones Lily had taken away, twice. From back when her name was Hope Swan-Jones. She felt disoriented and dizzy as memories made their way back into her head, an overwhelming flood of images playing over and over.

✧ ✧ ✧

Eyes blinking open, she could see a blurry image of a woman, golden blonde hair and a red leather jacket, her mother. Emma looked at her, cradling baby Hope in her arms, "Isn't she a sweetheart," her voice echoed through her ears and another person entered her vision, she cooed and swatted at the man's plastic hook, her father grinned.

"Why don't you read to her, love?" Killian said and handed a large hardback storybook to Emma, the cover read 'Once Upon A Time'.
It was a story that was read to her many times, every time the words filled her mind with fascination and wonder, the voice of her mother bringing the tales to life...

✧ ✧ ✧

"I love you, Hope" Emma whispered into her ear, crouching down to wrap her daughter in a tight hug, stroking her long blonde hair.

"I love you too, mummy," She grinned, relishing in her mother's warmth before she would be dragged off to her first day of school, she just wanted to stay with her parents, was that too much to ask?

"Hey what about me, squirt?" Killian, playfully wrestled his wife out of the way to pick his daughter up in a bundle, swinging her around in a circle,

"Stop daddy!" She squealed, giggling into the wind. She wrapped her around him till he placed her back on the ground,

"Now don't go having too much fun without us, ok?" He ruffled her hair took her hand, kissing it, earning him a high pitched Ewwww, "You're my little princess so you go in there and rule your kingdom. It's waiting for you," She nodded her head solemnly.

"Now go have fun!" Emma said as Lily and her daughter made their way over,

"DARCYYY!" She ran towards her best friend in the whole entire world, smothering the small black-haired girl in a hug.
And together they walked hand in hand into the school, full of energy from their nervous jitters...

✧ ✧ ✧

"And now in your groups of five, I would like you to go around and introduce yourselves," Mrs Blanchard, the beautiful teacher, also known as know white said in her sweetest, most kindest voice. The whole class of five-year-olds completely entranced in her loveliness.

"My name's Robyn West," a little redhead girl said with her arms across her chest, her face contorted in a grumpy pout, "My mommy said school was fun and I would meet new people but I already know everyone here and I hate school," she announced, attracting the attention of the beautiful pixie cut lady,

"Now now Robyn, Zelena only wants what's best for you and I'm absolutely sure you will love it by tomorrow, can you hold on till then for me?" She asked, Robyn nodded her head, "Why don't the rest of you introduce yourselves too," Mrs Blanchard said and noticed her son sticking his tongue out at another student, "That's enough Neal, please behave yourself," He immediately sat up straight and Mrs Blanchard walked off leaving the small group of five to continue introducing themselves.

"I'm Neal Nolan," said, the son of their favourite teacher and Prince Charming.

"I'm Gideon Gold," said the dashingly handsome son of Rumplestiltskin and Belle.

"I'm Darcy Page," said her very best friend in the whole entire world.

She was next, "I'm Hope Swan-Jones," she said.
And little did she know that her three new acquaintances would forever become her closest friends...

✧ ✧ ✧

The black-haired boy had just climbed to the top of the monkey bars and everyone was staring at Neal in awe.
"I bet I could do that," the small redhead girl yelled up at him, he simply stuck his tongue out at her,

"No you couldn't," Gideon, their brunette friend taunted, "How are you going to get down now?"

The boys face shifted into a look of horror, "It's so far up,"
He looked around, shifting his legs to latch onto a pair of bars, when suddenly he began to slip. A shriek left the boys lips and began falling in slow motion.

Her eyes widened with outstretched arms shot a bright light out of her hands, everything was silent as the blonde girl stopped the falling boy with magic...

✧ ✧ ✧

It was her eleventh birthday and she was at a park with Darcy playing tag, running after her friend, she was catching up quick. Her lungs were burning but she was so close, she had to win the game. She saw black hair flying across the road, she began running faster, across the road. Then she heard a scream.

She stopped, where was Darcy? The car sped off into the distance and there was no sign of her friend. She didn't know what she was going to tell her mum, Emma was on the other side of the park chatting with Lily, that wasn't going to be a fun conversation...

✧ ✧ ✧

Lily was dragging her by her wrist, "Come on, it'll be fun! Just come with me,"
She had felt scared but Lily had promised she was safe and they were going somewhere fun. They had reached the edge of town, she had never been outside of Storybrooke in her life so she was full of adrenaline and excitement. Maleficent had joined them and Lily was embracing her mother.

"You don't have to do this,'" Lily said and she could see tears in her eyes.

"I have to do this for your future, I've lived for long enough and you need your revenge and happily ever after. I would gladly spend my last moments making my daughter happy,"
Maleficent said as Lily sobbed into her arms.

"I love you mum," Lily said as Maleficent pulled her heart out of her chest.
She had no idea what was happening and blatantly followed the two women to a large pot of boiling substance, it looked like magic she thought. It had looked like bad magic too but her mum said that Lily and Maleficent were the good guys and she trusted Aunty Lily, especially after Darcy had died, Aunt Lily was always there for her.

Maleficent crushed her heart, the ash falling into the pot as she fell to the floor, was she dead? She didn't know what to think.
Suddenly a green smoke emerged and Aunty Lily handed her a small vial of blue liquid, "Quickly, drink this,"
She looked at the bottle, it looked yummy. She chugged it and things went all woozy, her first memory wipe...

✧ ✧ ✧

She ran down the stairs of her small apartment, it was a two-bedroom house but it was just right for her and Lily. They had lived there for as long as she could remember.
"It's your first day of high school, Addi!" Lily cried and she ran up to hug her.

She could see over her shoulder a stack of waffles and hot cocoa with cinnamon, just the thing she needed to boost her energy. The two inhaled the waffles in a matter of seconds and before she knew it, it was eight o'clock.
She had her bag ready with all her books and food, feeling a buzz of both excitement and dread.

Her middle school was terrible, she barely remembered her elementary school at all but she was bullied terribly. She had always retaliated angrily ending her up in many detentions and lots of trouble, her councillor had suggested she take up a physical activity to get her issues out so she had started boxing and every one pitied whoever she was up against.

She had always felt like she didn't belong, first off she was adopted and her mother was rarely around, always at her new cafe, managing and working all the time. Lily was rarely around for her anymore and she had never had any close friends, people just didn't get her so she had decided that she would turn a new leaf, no one would mess with her anymore, not this year.
She grabbed her black leather jacket, pulling it over her arms with a satisfied grin, this was going to be a hell go a year...

✧ ✧ ✧

She had fallen in with the popular kids at school, with her black leather jacket and badass attitude, everyone wanted her as a part of their group just to look cool, but no one wanted to be friends with her because they were too scared of her, just as she wanted.

It was English class, the second week of school sitting next to the obnoxious redhead girl. She had never gotten to know her name but the girl never stopped trying to talk to her but none of her 'friends' were in that class so she just stuck with her, never actually listening to a word the girl said.
"Page, You wanna be partners for the project?" the girl elbowed her softly, grinning wildly.

She snapped out of her daze to look at the smiling girl, "Uh, sure,' she said casually, not awfully excited at all.

They arranged to work on the project at her house and she learned the girl's name was Robyn. Robyn lived in a share house with four other kids from their school and two adults, Henry and his wife Caris, because they lived too far away to stay with their own parents.
By the end of the night, she didn't want to leave, she had never felt so at home and carefree, Neal and Gideon were two boys in her year level that she always admired, they were the designated goof off, badass duo while Alex and Phillip were both two years ahead of them, about to head off to college.
She had found her new family...

✧ ✧ ✧

They had just graduated and she going to be spending the summer in her friends home town, Storybrooke. Lily still just thought she was going to some educational college camp, she never would have let her go on her own.
Beyond excited, she sat down at the table with Lily to eat the cake she had bought, just for the two of them to share. It was the day of her eighteenth birthday and the first time she had had a proper conversation with her mother in years.

Later that day she was off on the road trip of a lifetime...

✧ ✧ ✧

Henry fished around his pocket for the envelope and when he pulled it out, she could tell it was the real thing.

He handed it to her and she took it in her grip hesitantly, she looked to Robyn, who was nodding at her to open it, "Neal hacked into the system to get that for us, I don't know what you're going to find but whatever it is, we're here for you," her best friend smiled and eyed off the paper in her hand. The paper that contained the answers she had been looking for all her life, her true parents.

She slit the envelope open and slid out the piece of paper, "Here, you look first," she said, squinting her eyes shut and shoving the paper into the girl's chest, "I can't do it,"

Robyn shoved the paper back at her, "You have to do it, it's your past, not mine,"
She took the paper back and with shaking hands unfolded it.

"No fucking way,"
It was Emma Swan and Killian Jones...

✧ ✧ ✧

Henry, apparently her half-brother, avoided her eye, "Please, I deserve to know," she pleaded, "You guys are the only ones who remember what happened," she nodded to Henry, Phillip and Alex. They had gotten out of town before the curse hit, they were the only ones who knew the full story and she was dying to know.

"Fine," her brother said and told her everything...

✧ ✧ ✧

Lily had not been happy when she had called her to tell her she had found her parents, that was obviously before she found out her mother was a lying psychopath who kidnapped and drugged her but nonetheless she was on her way to Storybrooke, ready to take her home.

Lily had entered the town, temper fired and ready to kill, her family was there to meet her. The yelling started, and then the fighting, and then the Lily turning into some huge-ass dragon and breathing fire on everything.
It was all too much and she had to get away. Running towards the docks, the one place she could breathe and think without anyone yelling at her. But it was all too much to hope that she could get away from it all and run away from her problems.

"Addi," the distinct voice of Lily approached her and she just wanted the ground to swallow her whole.

"I'm don't care what you have to say, I know everything," she said, refusing to look at her mother.
"Please, you only know one side of the story, hear me out. I love you, Addi, I could never do anything to hurt you," lies were never something she could tolerate.

"Well you did, deal with it,"

"They're not who you think they are, they say they're heroes but you don't know what they've done," her mother said, walking towards her and forcing her chin up to look at her, "We can go somewhere, somewhere away from this whole mess. Just you and me,"
Their eyes met and she desperately wanted to believe her, believe that things could be simple like they once were but she knew there were things beyond simplicity, there were lies and deceit.
"Come with me, Addison. Take a leap of faith,"
She held a vial of bubbly blue liquid in one hand and a shiny bean in the other, "All you have to do. is believe,"

Maybe it was time for her to take a leap of faith, put her trust in someone who had her back from the beginning, for as long as she could remember, "I believe," she said in a whisper, to no one in particular, she just had to say those words, taste them on her lips.
Suddenly a bright light shot out of her, spreading all over town, blinding her and making her see at the same time, see everything she missed, her life in Storybrooke, her parents.

"Addi!" There they were, her parents, running towards her. She looked towards Lily who's face was ghostly pale.

"The curse," Lily said in a panic, directing her gaze to her daughter, "Quickly, before they come,"

Her body felt limp, with all the memories flashing through her mind, she couldn't comprehend a word Lily was saying, couldn't comprehend her fingers prying her mouth open to pour in the vial of oozing blue potion. The moment it touched her lips, she felt herself drifting even further, she knew this taste, she had tasted it before, it was a memory potion and she was being drugged once again.
She could only just register Lily throwing the bean to the ground where a hole opened up in its place.

Emma and Killian had caught up and with blurred vision, she watched in slow-motion as yet another battle commenced. There was yelling and magic and fear.

She was losing her footing and swaying back and forth, all eyes turned to her and Lily reached out to grab her hand,

"Addison!"

She felt her hand slipping, her head was woozy, what was going on? She could feel herself falling, falling towards the floor, hard. A hole seemed to open up underneath her and a blinding light was seeping through, the next thing she felt was the hard earth underneath her fragile body.

Then it was blackness, pure and absolute darkness...

A.N
Soooo that was a backstory, I didn't reveal all of it and that's just a hint of the real stuff... I'm gonna write a full fleshed out backstory with all the characters and everything, it's gonna be so good ahhh like with Robyn, Gideon, Alex and Philil and everyone... And Neal... :(

Also that was in a different structure to usual so I hope everyone could understand all the time jumps and everything :)

Stay safe and enjoy!!!