Scarlet sat on the dirt ground curled next to the campfire that they had set up. She wrapped the remains of her husband's jacket more closely to her body. She shivered at the memory of her and her husband being encased in solid ice earlier that day. If she didn't still have access to the button of her lava lamp dress, then they wouldn't have been so lucky. She folded her arms and legs closer to her body as she stared into the burning embers of the fire.
This week had been exhausting to say the least. She started the day off believing that her final wish would come true. She would be crowned queen, a desire that burned through her heart since she was five years old. All those mean children who told her that she would never be a princess, let alone queen, would see how wrong they were. All those days when she had nothing, not even a dollar to her name, she would have a kingdom to rule. That void that she longed to fill would have finally been sealed.
But things didn't go the way she expected it. Those three bug eyed, pillared creatures had come in and had been rewarded the crown themselves. Albeit, they tried to redeem themselves by abdicating their position, but she didn't think that she could trust them. She had been dreaming about this moment for years and she didn't believe that she could put her faith in those minions again. So she sent them into a torture chamber to rot for the rest of their worthless lives. Looking back, maybe it was a bit petty to do such a thing, but she couldn't help feeling what she felt. Forgiveness was not something she was comfortable with. She didn't believe in second chances. She did not want to risk the chance of being hurt twice. She knew the consequences of that forgiveness all too well.
Yet, the youngest of them all proved her wrong. Little Bob had offered his bear's tiny crown to her. Whether he had done it out of pity or genuine kindness, she was touched. Even after all that had happened, he looked at her with kind eyes and an open heart. She never expected somebody she treated so cruelly to offer her any kind of warmth.
Scarlet rolled the tiny trinket in her hands. There was no doubt that it was real gold. She could tell fake from a mile away. It came with the experience of being an expert criminal, or former expert criminal, she conceded.
As she played with the shiny object in her hands, she dwelled more on the memory of the little minion who gave it to her. Maybe those minions weren't that bad after all.