Warning: Dark themes ahead, though I do not think it is too dark or full of gore.
Prompt: In FTL, Lacey is the Dark One's Lady Macbeth. In Storybrooke, she's sweet, kind and encouraging Belle.
A/N: This is for a prompt that I receive on Tumblr. I am not sure if this answers the prompt and if the writing is nothing but puerile.
Red is the only colour she sees, the reminder of her atrocities. She remembers draining the blood of those who displease her, watching the twitching of their bodies and their limbs go limp. She would then chop off the heads and send them to family members; a warning to others who would dare break a deal with her. The bodies would be fed to the creatures inhabiting the Infinite Forest and they love her for the fresh meal.
/888/
Somewhere along her accumulation of power she remembers wringing the neck of a babe in front of its parents. The peasant couple managed to wriggle their way out of the deal and there is nothing she could do about it. They managed to fool her, Lacey – the Dark One's wife, and no one is allowed to do so without repercussions.
She petrified the couple, forcing them to watch in horror as their child flailed its arms and legs until it could move no more. Dropping the lifeless body on the ground she decided that crushing its head would be a wonderful grand finale to her deed. Oh, she did so enjoy the sound of cracked bones and splattered innards. This is her first child victim and she giggled at the fact that she still has a 'first'. Feeling satisfied, she went back to the Dark Castle, eager to tell Rumplestiltskin of her deal.
Lacey takes pride in being able to predict her husband's reaction and know his thoughts. Thus, it was a surprise to see the disgust and horror in his eyes after retelling the peasant's demise. He was standing stiffly and waves of anger radiating from him were palpable. When she took a step towards him he lashed out and one thing lead to another.
/888/
Today, it has been a year since they fought. They no longer talk, no longer share a bed and the last she has seen him was five months ago. He does all he could to stay away from her. One would think he would cast her out with the way he is behaving, but he did not and this confuses her.
She will not deny that she misses his presence and whenever they chanced to meet she would beg for forgiveness if she has displeased him in any way. He could only look at her with sadness before disappearing in a cloud of smoke. Once, she happened upon him when he was in an inebriated state. He smiled wistfully and ran a finger along her cheek. "You were supposed to remember who you are. I've failed you," he whispered softly before giggling maniacally and transporting himself away from her, again. Of what exactly he was speaking of she could not make heads or tails of it.
/888/
Without her husband by her side she grows lonely and depressed. The things that she once took great pleasure in now repulse her. Slowly, the deaths she had caused made their way into her dreams and guilt crept up to her. Screams of pain that once filled her with glee now suffocate her. Oftentimes, she finds herself waking up screaming. She could feel she is losing grasp on her sanity and finds it hard to separate her reality from her nightmares.
The final thread holding her sanity snapped when saw the body of the child she murdered at every part of the castle; the word 'Murderess' written on the walls. She starts to run and before long she found herself jumping off the castle's turret. Purple clouds engulfed her and she remembers no more.
/888/
A pair of blue eyes shot open and a gasp escaped the owner's lips. Drool dribbled at the side of the woman's mouth and she quickly wiped it away. She shook her head trying to dispel the terrifying dream images.
Looking around, she recognises her surroundings as the children's ward. The clock on the wall shows her volunteer shift ended 30 minutes ago. Bending down, the woman picked up the book that fell from her lap and caressed it lovingly. The children would want her to read it again tomorrow.
Navigating her wheelchair to each bed she kissed the sleeping children on their foreheads before heading home. She looks forward to another day of sun-filled laughter and strawberry kisses; dream of blood and corpses completely forgotten.