Lost Snapshots: She Never Had a Fighting Chance
Author's Note: please leave a review. My Greek beta whose never seen Tin Man encouraged me to post all these as one-shots. The point of this series of fics is to take moments that the miniseries failed to explain or left off at, and write about what went on, or give insight to a character and add back story or whatever. In this, Azkadellia first realizes that there is a slipper from the other side. It's short and not so sweet, but it is how I felt things could have gone down. Anyway… please review. Also, I'm looking for someone to beta the rest of my Tin Man stories, so please anyone interested message me!
Disclaimer: I don't own Tin Man because if I did I would buy Cain and those deliciously tight pants and that hat…
Azkadellia—the real Azkadellia not the one who the people of the OZ saw, but the scared girl who was a prisoner of her own body—suddenly felt a strength she had thought lost to her for more than fifteen annuals. Her baby sister—her DG, was alive!
She knew she shouldn't be so surprised—DG had always possessed strength so much stronger than she—Azkadellia had. Yet for years, despite the inexplicable optimism that her best friend still survived, The Witch would simply force her to watch as the memory played: her first murder. That of the one person she felt could save her from her prison.
And it was that memory that served to force Azkadellia into submission whenever she felt it in her to rebel. Eventually, her attempts at purging herself from The Witch became more and more sporadic until they eventually ceased almost entirely. It drained her emotionally bit by bit every time she tried and failed. The Witch made sure she was punished for her discrepancies, for as she often reminded her, she had to be punished. Then, something happened to ensure her continued attempts for freedom and control: The Witch wanted Ambrose killed.
Azkadellia had always had a crush on her mother's young advisor, and sensing this, The Witch wished to remove such a distraction from her host. So, the young girl trapped in an older form, unable to mature beyond childhood was forced to watch herself order Ambrose's brain removed, thus killing him. Her reasoning for removing his brain was to gain the knowledge of some technology that The Witch had heard Ambrose mention when, in an effort to comfort herself, Azkadellia had recalled a particularly nice afternoon she had spent in the gardens with Ambrose. When the procedure was about to commence, Azkadellia pushed herself harder than she had to save DG, for her magic was stronger now, always gaining strength with each fight for freedom and control. However, she had only made herself capable of screaming "stop!" to the medics, when The Witch took control again, pushing Azkadellia away from their combined consciousness.
The Witch later told Azkadellia the reason for telling the doctors to remove half the brain and not the full thing was to cover for Azkadellia's outburst. She was reminded that the most important thing for now was that no one saw her as weak, and no one suspect the take-over. Azkadellia was reminded for the final time not to let emotions such as "love" interfere with her power and their plan for control of the OZ.
Before she was barely 16, The Witch decided that Azkadellia needed a different wardrobe. The light cotton dresses, she was told were too innocent for someone of their power. The Witch then started dressing them in tight, revealing outfits that she was told gave them a more dominant, aggressive look that was fitting of them. However, after Azkadellia's interference with Ambrose's death, The Witch decided she needed to show the girl how "love" was an illusion for the weak of heart and entirely different from the sexual dominance that Azkadellia had yet to learn. So that night, The Witch called the young Longcoat called Zero to her quarters, where she pushed him onto the bed and proceeded to undress herself. All Azkadellia could manage to do was feel her soul crumble upon itself. With The Witch, their relationship was one of balance: when Azkadellia was at her climax of control, The Witch was at her trough, and vice versa. At that moment, as The Witch was at a peak with the power she experienced with the young Longcoat under her complete sexual mercy, and the need with which he wanted her, Azkadellia never felt so exposed and humiliated and helpless. She was unable to even cry, as The Witch was controlling their body now, and Azkadellia could do little more than whimper for her parasite to stop, and beg for forgiveness that she had even let her mind be tricked into feeling anything for Ambrose in the first place. The Witch just told her to remain quiet and regardless, she needed discipline and this was all love amounted to. So Azkadellia was helpless to stop herself from being raped, aging immeasurably and finally able to see just how cruel The Witch truly was. The worst part was though she felt such a helplessness and desperation at the act, she was unable to stop from feeling the sensation as Zero came inside of her. The Witch however simply continued to enjoy the power of controlling him in yet another way, always showing her supremacy, always needing to be in control, warping Azkadellia's beauty to something so sordid.
This act continued for years, Azkadellia being raped as her body's acts were out of her own hands, each time by a different Longcoat; forced to relive the experiences that held no satisfaction whatsoever night after night. Eventually she learned to block her thoughts and forced herself to think of Ambrose and how it couldn't be long until someone saved her. Then, her thoughts would inevitably turn to DG, and she felt that the pain she experienced was her penance for everything she had inadvertently caused by not having the strength to fight off The Witch. But she had learned, and so, as The Witch grew restless to kill the queen, Azkadellia was constructing a plan. Slowly, she feigned submission to The Witch and let her believe that she was finally giving into the darkness, and learning to view The Witch as a mentor. When she had finally gained The Witch's trust, The Witch, now seeing her as a daughter of some sort, asked her if she wanted to do the honors of killing the queen—who had not saved her. Azkadellia finally saw the time to put her plan in action. She snapped at The Witch's suggestion, telling her that the queen deserved to suffer as Azkadellia had and deserved to be locked away in her own prison. The Witch agreed wholly and together, she and Azkadellia combined their powers to create the island the queen would inhabit for eternity. Although Azkadellia would never let this be known, she saw it as a temporary inconvenience, far better than the alternative of killing her mother.
Never once did she blame DG. Only herself, for the acts that she saw executed out of her own mouth, unable to fully intervene. Which is why, when she was told of a slipper who threatened The Witch's plan for dominance, she had no doubt as to who she was. She knew her sister's presence was why she had become stronger, the light flowing more freely within her. Just knowing that DG was here, and that it wouldn't be long until she would really be saved gave her a strength that she hadn't felt in 18 annuals. The strength she felt from her sister's presence and the joy at the news of her arrival had left her able to fully shield her mind from The Witch, and for the first time she realized that the end was really and truly near for The Witch. Now, it was only a waiting game, waiting until her baby sister, her best friend came to rescue her after so long. She realized she would be able to make it through the next few days easily, just resting herself, gaining her strength, because when DG was ready to fight, she would be ready to help.
For she realized that all this time, when she kept blaming herself for not being stronger and able to stop The Witch, she never could have done anything by herself. Not really. Not without her sister's strength, and love. For now she would just have to bid her time, helping to call to DG and guide her through her journey to the Dark Tower. She would be the one to stop Azkadellia's torment and manage to heal so many years worth of pain. With her sister by her side, Azkadellia's magic would be at its full power. She would finally be free to become to just, and compassionate woman she was on the inside. For the first time in 18 annuals, she would be able to bear tonight and the acts it would bring, knowing it would all be over so soon.
Together with DG—The Witch: well she never had a fighting chance.
Fin.
Author's Note: Please review. It was my first Tin Man fic and there are a bunch more than half written that I swear are a lot better. I'll get discouraged if I don't get any reviews.
