Chapter Text
Red stared at the sobbing future Queen of Hearts. Her pink hair was askew. Her ripped and ruffled castlecoming dress was stained with dirt and grass marks. The bright and sweet girl, who gave everyone cupcakes and foolishly saw the good in everyone, looked like a shell of her former self.
Her thousand-watt smile was absent. In its place were the sobs of an emotionally shattered girl. Hands curled around herself, rocking slowly, and ignoring any form of comfort from her best friend, Ella, the future Queen of Cinderellaburg.
Red felt sick watching Bridget at any contact or sudden movement, pressing herself further against the wall to escape it. This was it, the moment when the Queen of Hearts' heart hardened and solidified.
It wasn’t just a prank, like future Cinderella said. It was far worse than a mere prank. It was a personal attack on mind, body, and soul.
Red’s whole body was overtaken with a sinking feeling that formed in her stomach as her mind raced about what happened and how she… failed.
It was true her mother didn’t love her like a conventional one, but she cared in her own way.
The redheaded girl's mind unwillingly settled into a memory.
She was nine. Maddox was watching her, and they were playing chase. Running back and forth until their faces were roaring red and lungs gasping for air. Little Red was desperate to win, for the consequences of losing meant more boring schoolwork, so she vowed not to fail.
Maddox was gaining on her when she finally had the idea to scale this ancient tree in the main courtyard of the castle. The tree was so tall and humongous that it rivalled a tumtum tree where the Jabberwocky lives.
The fearless child had no qualms about climbing the tree and the possible danger it would bring. The only thing in the world little Red feared was her mother, but as she climbed the tree, the young heir felt light and carefree in the knowledge that her mother could not find or catch her up here.
She climbed branch after branch, ascending the tree, ignoring Maddox's cries for her to come down as she conquered the tree. Her little hands were finding it hard to grip the thicker branches as she got further up the tree. Learning quickly, she strategically avoided the bigger branches, opting for the smaller ones in clear view.
Eventually, after leaping up to grab the final branches, she stood unsteadily on the final branch with nothing to grip. By sheer willpower and recklessness, she kept steady in her precarious situation.
“Red! Come down, you’re going to hurt yourself!” Maddox shouted up at her to be heard over the altitude. His voice was fearful.
Meanwhile, Red smiled at the rare bright blue sky. Not a cloud could be seen. Princess Red couldn’t remember a time when the clouds weren’t overcast and stormy, threatening the citizens of Wonderland much like their Queen.
Red began to recall things she had seen and heard about her mother. The tales of her villainous behaviour were not baseless, as Red herself witnessed a beheading when she was just eight and a half.
She had hidden behind a corner in the courtyard, curious to see what the commotion was about. The crowd gathered, through a gap in the crowd that surrounded the stage, she saw the glint in the silver axe as it came down, separating head from body.
She stared in horror at the scene, unable to turn her eyes away until her stomach turned at the blood and insides appearing outside. She tried to escape but collapsed on the steps of the castle. She collapsed onto the ground and puked up her breakfast on the stone stairs.
Her mother found her shortly after, a look of disappointment on her face, glaring down at her daughter’s weakness.
“Red, this is your future. Take a long look. This is what we do to stay strong.” Her mother’s voice was steely with her usual authority.
The Queen stepped over her daughter with an air of indifference and, before leaving, added, “Clean this mess when you’re done.”
Her dismissive wave was her final parting gift.
Red collapsed back, staring at the stormy sky as she weakly wiped her eyes to hide her seeping weakness.
The nine-year-old Red shook off that horrific memory and looked at the bright blue sky and far into the distance at the trees and villager houses. They were so far away that they were barely noticeable.
Glancing down, she could see a good portion of the castle grounds. The walls were a scarlet colour, but in the night glow, they seemed almost pink. The castle was her home, but it never felt peaceful or safe. She could stay in this tree forever.
A big gust of wind blew through the tree, making her smile widely as it cooled her overheated body. She soaked in the freedom. It was almost like she could touch the surface. Up here, anything seemed possible.
Until an ungodly screech filled the air… her mother. “Princess Red of Hearts!” her voice booming. “Get down here this instant!”
With a start at the suddenness of her ruined peace, her high came crashing down, knocking her off balance. She stumbled, and the world seemed to still for a second before it moved and turned rapidly as she failed to regain her balance.
“RED!” A voice cried out in deep concern.
She hit the first branch dead centre, knocking the wind out of her. The pain radiated from her face, chest, and leg. Even though the pain dazed her for a few seconds, she swung her arms wildly, desperate to find purchase on the branch before gravity claimed her again.
She missed some branches on the way down, though she still hit far too many to count. There was one branch she dared not forget. A loud, resonant crack filled the air as her right arm collided with a thick, sturdy branch. She released a blood-curdling scream, going to cradle her injured arm instinctively as she dropped further.
She avoided more branches by mere chance as she fell the final distance to the ground. Her piercing screams filled the air. Her stomach dropped as she free-fell through the air.
She spent a few more seconds in the air until her fall came to an end.
A Browder net made of cards stopped her from plummeting the final four feet to the ground. She landed, pain shooting through her like molten lava. She was barely aware of her surroundings as the net slowly descended until it rested on the green grass.
She whimpered and cried, her body shaking and eyes blurry from tears. The pain was maddening, radiating up and down her injured arm, which she landed on. Her ankle hurt too, and blood dripped down the side of her face. Overwhelmed, she curled in on herself and closed her eyes.
People were calling her name, but they sounded like they were underwater. She couldn’t look up, and for what felt like hours, she attempted to breathe through the pain. She must have passed out because the last thing she remembered was a body pulling her into an embrace and hugging her with a vice grip. It hurt. Everything did.
When she woke in her bedroom, for a moment, she thought it was an elaborate dream. Until she tried to sit up, leaning on her right arm, and with a groan of pain, she collapsed back on the bed.
A movement in the corner of the room startled her. It was her mother, the great Queen of Hearts. Her usually immaculate hair was frazzled and untidy, her crown was strangely absent, and for the first time, Red saw red-rimmed eyes.
An uneasiness settled in her chest as they stared at each other across the room.
Her mother took a shuddering breath, breaking eye contact first, such an act that Red had never seen before.
Resting against the pillows, anxiously, Red cradled her injured arm and stared unblinkingly at her mother. The Queen's heeled shoes echoed through the room as she approached the young heir.
Red shifted, leaning against her left leg, and her ankle protested loudly. She held back a hiss.
A manicured hand cradled her cheek gently, not digging nails in like usual, and began rubbing a thumb up and down her cheekbone. She flinched at the unexpected tenderness of the gesture. It was unfamiliar, but she found herself leaning into the gesture, nonetheless.
After the life-and-death experience, she was feeling emotional and craved the tenderness she had never been shown once in her little life.
She absorbed the affection silently for a few long minutes until she broke it. “Mother,” she began. “I am sorry-
“Save it, Red. I don’t want to hear another word.”
“Ma-“she started to say hesitantly against her better judgment. She wanted to apologize or explain, but an unyielding arm wrenched her casted arm forward, causing a sickening lurch of pain to shoot through her. Her mother’s stony face loomed over her as she squeezed Red’s injured arm with increasing intensity.
“If I ever see you risk your life again. I kill everything you love and care about, and don’t worry, that includes Maddox. Do you understand me?”
When she failed to give an immediate response due to the pain, her mother yanked her arm further away from Red’s body at an awkward angle. She screamed with the pain, unable to form words, but somehow found the strength to nod jerkily.
She would do anything to make the pain go away and save Maddox.
“Good girl, will make a queen out of you yet.” Her mother said, releasing her hand, grinning down at her, and placing a kiss on her forehead.
Her hand throbbed as she whimpered from the pain.
Her mother's heels clanged off the marble floor as she left Red alone in her misery.
Red caressed the arm she had broken in the past as she felt the memory slip away.
After some rather uncomfortable math, she deduced roughly nine months from the present that the heir to the throne of Hearts was born. She was born. Unless Bridget had been seeing anyone else besides Hook around this time, which Red doubted…... her father was her mother's rapist.
Her father was a monster. He dated her mother only to humiliate her at Castlecoming because of Ulinna's orders.
Her own mother, who was once sweet and bubbly, hates Red because of him. She can’t love her daughter because of him. This explains so much about her life and her relationship with her mother. Her mother hated her because she was the product of her attack. A physical embodiment of her worst moment.
It dawned on her that the Queen of Hearts was born again and she was much too late to stop it. She was primed to kill everyone in her path. This was her fault.
Guilt for something she had no part in churned in her chest. Tears gathered in Red’s eyes as she stared at the devastated mother. She tried to keep her composure like her mother ingrained in her, but it was impossible. The lessons her mother had taught were starting to make sense.
“Don’t let them see you cry, child. This world does not treat weakness kindly. Do you want to be exploited?” Her mother used to whisper in her ear when she cried after her punishments.
It was all starting to make too much sense. She felt the tears stream down her face for the life she could have had if she were born from love like Chloe.
Her mother turned out the way she did because the world gave her no mercy. And so she returned that sentiment tenfold.