Zelena grows up in Oz, raised by a drunken woodsman after his wife passes away, who hates Zelena's magic. One day, the woodsman tells Zelena that she is adopted and calls her "wicked" due to her magical abilities, so Zelena leaves and goes to see the Wizard of Oz. The Wizard reveals that she has a sister named Regina who is being mentored in magic by a powerful sorcerer named Rumplestiltskin. She vows revenge on her sister for having everything she never did.