"What do you mean it was a dare?"
Lizzie glared up at Sparrow, eyes narrowed as far as they could go before she was squinting. She would have dropped her tray if she hadn't been clutching to it so tightly. Her posture was so stiff, but she was trembling in anger.
Sparrow strummed his guitar, the sound blasting in her ears. "You mean Daring didn't tell ya?"
"No, he did not," Lizzie huffed, straightening her back.
"Well, it makes sense." Sparrow lifted his guitar once more and sung the rest of his sentence. "It was all part of the plan, yeah!"
Not wanting to hear his deafening music any longer, Lizzie placed her tray back down near the buffet and stormed out of the Castleteria. Her heels clicked along the floor loudly as they usually did when she was angry, and by godmother, she was angry.
How dare Daring play her like that? She had told him earlier that he wasn't charming, and while she had been changing her perspective, she didn't particularly feel like it now. He had sauntered up to her, making her believe that he was actually interested in her, but he was just playing her. He was a Royal, after all. How could she have believed that he wanted to change his destiny?
She realised as soon as she stepped outside that the light was fading from the day. The sun was ever present in Wonderland, except when it wasn't, and it never was when it wasn't. To put it simply, she was actually a little afraid of the dark.
Shaking her head, she pressed on. She was too angry to stay indoors where she could cut the heads off of every statue she could find. She had actually done that once, and it hadn't been pretty. Detention had been the only place she was allowed for weeks, but that was beside the point. At the moment she didn't want to see anyone or anything other than wildlife.
Wonderland Grove was her favourite place in all of Ever After. It was the place she could really feel at home, the only place that understood her madness. Relaxation was only possible there, even her dorm room being off limits when she wanted to wind down. Duchess had a mouth on her, and she was incredibly annoying at times.
Setting herself down between two oversized playing cards, these ones not alive, she let herself break down. Tears were not something a queen was allowed to show in front of others, but she figured if she was by herself it would be okay. Her mother's cards had been mostly abandoned and she had to admit that life without them made her feel somewhat freer. However, she still leaned on them when there was a crisis, just like now. She shuffled through her deck.
Times like those
not so melrose
pick thou up
be a queen
and OFF WITH THEIR HEAD
Lizzie didn't think that applied here.
"Is that a fair damsel I hear crying?"
She could have passed out right then and there. Of all the people to be passing by, of all the people to be out at this time of day, it just had to be Daring Charming. She shuffled backwards, attempting to hide herself among the cards and just blend in, but she just couldn't control her sobs.
Footsteps crunched on the grass, gradually coming closer before they finally stopped.
"Lizzie?"
Lizzie looked up into the concerned face of Daring. He was looking very unlike himself, seeming concerned instead of confident, caring instead of ignorant. She thought that she was probably one of the only people who had seen him like that, even if it had only been a couple of months. He had always been sweeter and kinder to her than anyone else.
He sat in front of her, legs crossed. "Lizzie, please tell me what's wrong."
She shook her head in defiance.
"Please? You know you can trust me, right?"
That sent a surge of anger throughout her body. What right did he have to say that to her? He was willingly deceiving her their entire relationship. Everything he had told her, everything he had confided in her, she had kept a secret, even from Kitty. For all she knew he could have told her secrets to the world, the entire school laughing at her behind her back.
"No, I can't trust you!" she shouted. "You never once told me it was a dare, Daring Charming! All your efforts, all your attention, just for a mediocre bet, a dare. This is why we don't have such things in Wonderland."
Daring's eyes grew wide, looking like a deer in the headlights. It wasn't too far from the truth, really. He was simply a Daring in the headlights.
Lizzie liked the sound of that.
"I-I, er, how did you know about that?" Daring asked, a slight chuckle to his voice. He dared to chuckle in front of a young woman with scissors and a sceptre at her disposal? The gall.
Lizzie crossed her arms. "Sparrow. He was shocked that I didn't know. It makes sense, though. I did see you washing his Grimmnastics uniform, but I was under the impression that was just another silly Ever After ritual." She looked back at him, eyes practically slits. "I don't like to make sense, Daring."
"Lizzie, I, well, it's true," he admitted, head hung low. "It is true that Sparrow and I had a bet, but please believe me when I say I do have feelings for you. After our first date, anyway."
Daring scooted closer and clutched her hand, squeezing it. She didn't squeeze back but she didn't pull back either.
"How am I supposed to believe you? Charming you are not, and I really should scream 'Off with your head', but I don't feel like it today." The rest she translated into her native tongue. "A goose and a bird are not the same, hats flying overhead. The rabbit galloped, not hopped, and down the rabbit hole they go."
"I – what?" Daring's confused face gave her a hint of satisfaction. "What did you just say?"
Lizzie stood up, ripping her hand out of his. "All I said was how I was even willing to change my destiny for you! Me of all people! The girl who aspires to be exactly like her mother, the Queen of Hearts. Before you came along I was perfectly content with upholding tradition and signing the Book of Legends!" She began muttering to herself in Riddlish.
Daring looked even more shocked, if that was even possible. "You're willing to give up your destiny for me?"
"I was," Lizzie corrected. "But now I know I'm just like the other girls."
Usually that phrase would make Lizzie feel better. As a resident of Wonderland, it was hard for her to fit into Ever After life. Kitty and Maddie seemed to be doing alright, having their own friends and making the most out of the experience, but Lizzie was still finding it difficult. No one understood when she attempted to make conversation, and she always stayed on the sidelines, wishing and hoping that she could be the centre of attention in a good way, even if it was just once.
Daring had made her feel like she wasn't an outcast in his own strange way. Now that she knew it was all for nothing she felt an emptiness lingering inside her. Perhaps that was what it felt like to be heartbroken.
Her mother was right. Friends were just one 'r' away from fiends.
Kicking Daring out of the way, just a little, she stormed away, ignoring his calls and pleas for her to come back.
The next best place to get some privacy was her dorm room, and that was where Lizzie went. Duchess was out somewhere, probably dancing somewhere near her lake, but Lizzie didn't really care. As long as the talkative goose or whatever she was stayed away for a while she could get some rest, alone time, and an opportunity to let her tears flow. Hopefully no one would hear her sobs.
Knock, knock. "Duchess, you in there?" An electric guitar echoed throughout the hallway.
Of course, that was just too much to wish for, and out of all the people around to hear her it had to be Sparrow. Part of her wanted to blame him for everything that had happened. She could have lived her life in perfect ignorance, at least until graduation, but no. Then again, the longer she lived without knowing the more hurt she would probably be, so in a way she had to thank Sparrow.
Mustering up her voice, she said, "Off with your head," but it sounded more like a whining child than a queen. She cringed. Showing weakness to others was not want she wanted.
"Whoa. So-rry, Li-zzie!"
With one last strum, Sparrow was off.
Lizzie sighed and settled back down into her sheets. She didn't know how long she remained there, the sun finally going down being the only indication that time was passing. Duchess still hadn't returned, thankfully, but that didn't mean she wasn't going to get visitors.
Just as the stars began twinkling in the sky, one by one, her door burst open. She sat up, alarmed at the sudden entrance of Maddie, though she was more shocked that the Hatter's daughter didn't simply break the wall down. She seemed alarmed and frantic, though she calmed down a bit when she saw Lizzie.
"Lizzie, Lizzie, Lizzie!" she screamed, jumping on the bed.
Lizzie readjusted her position, wiping her eyes to adjust to the light coming in front the hallway. "What is it, Madeline Hatter?"
Before a response could be formed, a grin appeared, followed by the rest of Kitty Cheshire. Even though her grin didn't leave, her voice sounded somewhat concerned (at least for her) when she said, "Sparrow said you sounded upset when he passed by earlier."
"That's not all though!" Madeline said, shrill voice cutting through the somewhat tense atmosphere. "Sparrow told us why he thought you were crying which was because Daring asked you out because of a bet the two of them had but you had no idea and all that sorta thing and I just kind of sat there like what because that's not like you but it's possible because anything's possible because we're from Wonderland."
Maddie took a deep breath and was about to continue her unpunctuated rambling when Kitty covered her mouth with her hand.
"Seriously, though," Kitty said. "What was all that about? Was what Sparrow said true?"
Lizzie hesitated. It was unbecoming of a queen to share her worries. She wasn't even supposed to have worries, at least according to her mother's cards. Then again, she had chosen to abandon the cards a long time ago, right? She wasn't bound to them anymore.
So she started to explain. She told them everything, starting from when Daring had first tried capturing her attention and ending with her and Daring's argument in the Grove. Her head remained down throughout the entire story, not wanting to make eye contact. She was ashamed of herself and it showed.
As soon as she was finished, Maddie stood up. "How dare he! And how dare Sparrow say so in front of the entire school!"
Lizzie's heart dropped down into her stomach. The entire school knew? If that was the case then her life was over before it had truly begun. She would become even more of an outcast, being laughed at constantly by those who usually ignored her. She didn't know what was worse.
The following morning, Lizzie had woken up to an earful of Duchess. As one of the many girls who were besotted by Daring, she hadn't taken kindly to the news of the bet. She kept on yelling at Lizzie as they dressed themselves and packed for class, only stopping when they parted at the Castleteria doors.
Duchess tip-toed to the buffet but Lizzie took no notice of her. Almost the entire student body was staring at her, or at least that was what it seemed like. She tried to ignore it as she grabbed a tray and took a plate of pancakes, sitting on her own in the corner of the Castleteria. She wanted to go as unnoticed as possible, but she could still feel everyone's piercing gazes.
Halfway through her first pancake, a shadow appeared before her and sat down. She didn't look up, knowing damn well who it was. No one else had a silhouette quite like Daring Charming.
"Off with your head," she mumbled.
"But I like my head, Lizzie. You know that," Daring said, voice showing hints of forced humour. This was obviously another way for him to trick her. Obviously.
Lizzie gave him a pointed look and his nervous smile sunk. The two sat in silence for a long while, or at least that was what it felt like. Perhaps if it had been a day or two ago she would have made a corny joke to herself about how time stopped still when she was around him (though that could not be so since it was a well-known Wonderland fact that time never stopped, only paused), but now she could only think of the person in front of her in a bitter way.
A cough caught her attention. She looked at Daring expectantly, waiting for an apology or something of the sort, which a queen such as herself deserved. Instead he said, "So, uh, we still cool?"
That earned him a pancake to the face.
Audible gasps could be heard from everyone else in the Castleteria. Other than the Royal V.S. Rebel food fight a few months ago, no one had ever messed up Daring's good looks, but Lizzie wasn't like everyone else. He may have been a future ruler of Ever After, but she was the future queen of Wonderland, and she was not about to take any form of humiliation from anyone.
"Off with your head!" she screamed, and anyone who hadn't stopped speaking in the vicinity now had.
Apple White then approached, a bird perched on her shoulder. "Lizzie, I understand that you must be upset, but throwing food is not the appropriate way to sort out our differences."
Wasn't it? Food fights were common in Wonderland and she had been shocked when people hadn't partaken in them in Ever After. She had learned that they weren't common and that Daring didn't like them, but that was all she knew.
If Apple sensed her confusion she didn't show it. "It's very simple what happened here. You were probably just too charmed by Daring. He does that, you know, but you shouldn't take it too seriously. He's the prince in my story and he knows that. He wouldn't jeopardize that for anything."
She flashed a sweet smile at Daring, but he didn't smile back. Instead, he slowly stood up and faced the perfect princess. "Actually, Apple…"
Lizzie held her breath. Was he about to say what she thought he was about to say? The thought was ridiculous, but it was possible. A Wonderland queen always knew that nothing was impossible, even events that seemed as such. Events in life were always possible, and all the students of Ever After High were proof of that, not just those from Wonderland itself. Even so, she just couldn't see Daring opposing his destiny.
"What is it, Daring?" Apple asked, smile slipping slowly off her face.
Daring took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Apple. I just can't see us together anymore. At least, it wouldn't be a happily ever after to me. Not if I don't love you."
He was saying what she thought he would say.
Tears came to Apple's eyes and Lizzie felt a pang in her stomach. Apple was just as devoted to her destiny as she had been, so she knew what it must feel like to have that ripped away. Raven had already taken one part of her destiny and now Daring was taking another. Lizzie felt somewhat responsible but shook her head. A future queen was only responsible for her own future monarchy and no one else's.
Apple ran away, covering her eyes with her hands and almost bumping into Dexter and Humphrey. Blondie ran after her, though Lizzie was surprised to see Briar giving her a soft look instead of running after her best friend. She had felt something wrong with Briar for the past few days, but that was currently the last thing on her mind.
She turned back to Daring who was breathing a sigh of relief. He must have seen the look of surprise she was wearing because he chuckled and said, "Shall we go outside?"
Lizzie once again avoided everyone's stares as she and Daring quietly left the room. They moved down the hallway so they were near one of the mostly unused staircases, the one that reminded her of Wonderland due to the playing cards lining the bannister. She stood underneath the space beneath the landing, Daring stopping in front of her.
"I-I don't understand," she managed to choke out. "You always said you were looking forward to your destiny."
Daring nodded. "I was, it was true. I was only really concerned for myself, and it was true that I was coming onto you so much because I didn't want to lose to Sparrow, but then I found myself liking our date." He rubbed the back of his head. "I found your wish to keep it a secret more compelling than winning against Sparrow, and I guess that was the start of it all."
Lizzie felt like she was going to be sick, but for some reason the feeling wasn't unpleasant. Was this the rumoured 'Wonderlandiful Butterflies' she had heard about when she was a young girl? Her mother had told her the myth was useless and something she had never experienced, and if the queen hadn't experienced it then it wasn't real. Now Lizzie wasn't so sure.
"The start of what?" she questioned, sounding somewhat suspicious, which wasn't her intention. She was simply curious.
Was that a dash of light red on Daring's cheeks? "When I started falling for you."
Yes, definitely Wonderlandiful Butterflies.
"I-I'm not sure I understand."
Daring smiled lightly and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. The action always made her knees shake, though she always tried to hide it. This time she didn't think she could with his intense eyes staring down at her. It wasn't like in the Castleteria where everyone was judging her. This was a look of compassion, sort of like the one her father gave her when she was a child, but it wasn't exactly the same.
"I'm in love with you, Lizzie," he said softly.
While she had known deep inside that it had been coming, she was still pleasantly surprised. To know that someone loved her, someone was in love with her, in this strange school was a comforting thought. She had once thought she was incapable of loving someone other than her father, but she had now been proven wrong.
She paused, weighing the options of what to do next in her head. Even though she had not willingly hugged anyone since she was younger, she figured that this particular moments was an exception. Raising her arms slowly, she hugged Daring, wrapping her arms around his torso.
As he rested his head on hers, the bell rang, though neither took much notice.
Hello, I hope you enjoyed it! This is my first EAH fanfic, so I hope I did well enough. Thanks for reading!