Standard Disclaimer as I don't own the Official Characters from Ever After High
Ever After High Presents;
The Reason
Chapter 1:
"Sometimes it's hard when finish off your story, even if you do have a 'happily ever after'." Snow White stated at the last part of her speech in the Charmintoriam. Headmaster Grimm's eyes looked as if they were ready to pop out in shock. He had invited Snow White to talk, to show the students how great it was to finish their tales, not to discuss repercussions. "At the end of my story the Evil Queen went a little power mad and tried to take over everything. Yes, she went off script, way off script, and she died because of it. She had been close friends with her roommate, Little Red Riding Hood, although she wasn't really very little." She added with a grin as she adjusted her breasts.
"Mooooooooomm." Apple cried in horror and her mother's off color comment. She'd promised Apple she would be a proper young queen when she gave this speech. Apple loved her mother, but as she'd gotten older Snow White didn't feel the need to prove herself to be so pure hearted and proper. It could be a little embarrassing, and up until now, only Apple's closest friend Briar had ever seen this side of her.
Raven Queen was as stunned as the others, but she was also enjoying Apple squirming. Sure they were friends, but sometimes, you have that friend who's rare uncomfortable moments make you smile. Raven took another moment to look around at the rest of the students. A number of the girls wore similar shocked expressions, most were giggling, and there was the small group of elitist girls who looked offended. Of course that group was always offended about something. And then there was a lack of boys, since this guest lecture was for the girl's only. She suspected that was the reason Snow White felt she could talk the way she was.
Raven thought about the passion the Evil Queen had in her hatred of Snow White, and She had a hard time connecting this woman with the picture Eva Queen had painted. In fact, based on this comment and a few of Snow's other interesting phrasings, Raven would have expected Snow White and the Evil Queen to have been as friendly as Apple and herself were, maybe even more so.
"But as I was saying, Red had lost her closest friend from school when the Evil Queen went Off Script and died because of it. Not all of us get the happy ending we want. However, a lot of us are lucky enough to still remain friends with our classmates afterwards. Even bitter enemies from school can become friends after. I never got the chance to become friends with the Evil Queen after our tale, but I wish I could have. It warms by little heart to see what my own daughter and the daughter of my mortal enemy from the story can be friends, and I pray their friendship will transcend their version's ending. Also, and this goes out to everyone. If your story ends up being harder then your parents story was, don't hold it against them. They couldn't help it.
"I actually stopped talking to my own mother for years after mine finished. As I'm sure you are all aware, she only had a couple of the quote, standard trials, that Snow White goes through, where upon, to make up for that, I got a couple of new ones. I will be honest with you, to say I was upset about it, was well, an understatement. I took it out on her, when I really should have been happy she was still around. My grandmother did not survive my mother's telling, and I don't know if I will survive my daughter's telling. What I do know is that all I want from her story is for her to keep her friends and her happiness. And to end up with her true love, of course." Snow White finished her speech and did a little curtsey.
Raven glanced at Apple and saw her wipe a couple of tears from her eyes. Had it never occurred to Apple that her mother probably wouldn't survive the telling of her story. So many Fairy Tales had bittersweet endings. The main character might live happily ever after, but often after something horrible and painful had occurred to them. It could be a direct occurrence or something to a family member. It could be a psychological thing, like with the Hazel and Gretel story, where the parents abandon their children to die. Looking around, she could tell that a number of the other students hadn't thought about such tings either. Some of them even had stories where they were supposed to die. Some could fake it like the Candy Witch had, but that doesn't always work either. When that happens, some other relative takes over the story. That was often how the age difference between characters occurred. Apple had never realized how sheltered the students of Ever After High truly were.
With the end of Snow White's speech, the girls' assembly was over as well as the day. Many girls went down to thank Snow White before heading back to the dorms, possibly going out to the shops in Book End, or even just hanging out. Apple and Raven both headed toward Snow White to speak to her. Raven had never actually spoken to the Queen of Ever After in person before.
"Mom, you promised." Raven heard Apple whisper as she hugged her mother.
"Oh honey, when you get older, you'll understand better." Her mother remarked. Raven smirked. She was really enjoying Apple's discomfort. "You must be Raven." Snow stated after the hug when she looked at Raven. "You look so much like your mother when she was in school." Raven could have sworn there was a hint of something in the way she said it, nothing bad, but maybe a little sadness. Raven just assumed Snow's comment about wanting to be friends with her mother was to make her point, but maybe she really meant it.
In what Raven considered to be her own awkward moment, Snow White gave her a hug as well. At least it wasn't a long hug, although Raven had to admit to herself, that it was nice to be hugged. Her own mother hadn't really hugged her much. Sure, she taught Raven how to cast curses, spells, and make potions, but she rarely hugged her. As they spoke a little more, another group of students showed up. Raven noticed them and rolled her eyes.
"Miss White, I just had to talk to you about your presentation." Hillary Hagyth stated interrupting the conversation. Hillary was the daughter of the enchantress whom cursed the Beast, and the unofficial leader of the fairy tale elitists.
"Why Miss Hag-yth, how lovely to see you." Snow stated with a hint of sarcasm. Did Apple talk about them at home during breaks, Raven wondered. Apple sighed. She seemed as happy as Raven was to see them. Hillary's expression stiffened. The sarcasm was not wasted on her.
"I just wanted to let you know that I have written a Mirror Mail to the administration and the school board about your offensive speech." Hillary stated. "I thought I would give you an opportunity to apologize before I sent it. I would be willing to add that as a Post Script to my letter." To Apple, it sounded far more like a demand then an opportunity. She always tried to find the best in people, but it was virtually impossible with Hillary. Snow White gave her a smile and did a little courtesy.
"My dear Miss Hag." She stated. "I'm so sorry that your over exaggerated sense of importance was offended by my presentation." For a moment Hillary had smiled thinking was getting an apology, and she was really proud of herself, but that was shattered as Snow spoke, and she realized it was an insult. Apple paled a little at her mother's words, while Raven couldn't help but smile. It was so nice to see someone put Hillary in her place. Too many people were afraid to do it because of the retaliation that often occurred.
"I, I, I…"Hillary stuttered, her anger rising.
"Please be sure to tell your mother I said hello." Snow White added as she waved the girl off.
"How dare you talk to me like that? Do you know who I am?" Hillary shouted.
"Oh yes Miss Hag, I know exactly who you are, and who your mother is, all they way down your families story." Snow White stated getting serious. "Where I think it's inspirational that your family managed to go from being known as an old "HAG" witch, to the current "beautiful enchantress", I find it absolutely appalling that your family line has done everything in it's power to make certain that others do not have the chance to do the same. I truly hope that you will not be like your hypocritical, backstabbing mother, and actually become the good, kind person your tale now has your character as." She finished.
"You, you horrible old bag." Hillary screamed in response. "I will not allow you to speak of my mother that way."
"Oh, does the truth hurt?" Snow asked. "Funny how you can't actually defend her isn't it? The facts just aren't there are they?" Snow shook her head in a pitying manner. Hillary looked like she was ready to blow her stack. One of the other girls quickly took her by the arm and walked her away from Snow White.
"Way to go Apple's mom!" Raven cried in joy.
"What were you thinking?" Apple asked and roughly the same moment. Snow White looked at her daughter, her expression a little sad.
"I'm sorry Apple, I hope it doesn't cause you any grief in the future, but to be honest, her mother ruined my life." She stated straight out. Apple's eyes opened wide. As far as she knew, her mother had lived a nearly perfect life. Raven cocked her head in a questioning manner but it became obvious that Snow White was not going to explain herself. Snow took a deep breath and held it, her lips moving slightly as she counted to calm herself down. Seeing Hillary had caused so many emotions to run through her.
Eira White stood in front of the headmaster's door getting ready to knock, although the door was already slightly ajar. It allowed her to hear voices inside, and she was about to leave when she heard her name. One voice was the headmaster, the other belonged to Halley Hagyth.
"I heard her Eira planning to change her story. She was discussing some of the details with Chance Charming." Halley stated.
"No. No. No. She promised to help us. Why would she tell Grimm?" Eira whispered to herself. Chance and herself were fated by the Story Book of Legend to be together in their version of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, but they didn't want to be together. They were both in love with someone else.
"Thank you for bringing this to my attention Miss Hagyth, I shall investigate the matter personally and take care of any indiscretions I find." The headmaster remarked.
"You are very welcomed sir. I would hate to see one of the most important stories in Ever After forever ruined because of Eira's selfishness."
"Mom, Mom, Mom!" Apple cried to get Snow White's attention.
"Oh, Apple, I'm sorry, I was lost in thought for a moment." And there it was, Apple could hear the sadness in her Mother's Voice. It was rare, and really only happened after Snow ended up lost in thought. She smiled at her daughter and gave her a hug, smushing her into her chest.
"Mom . . . Can't . . . Breath." Apple huffed. Snow shook her just a little bit before letting her go.
"You are the best thing your father and I ever did." Snow said with a smile. She'd returned to her normal happy self. "Why don't you and Raven join me for a quick dinner before I head back home." Both girls nodded in Agreement.
Raven slept with a smile on her face. Dinner with Snow White had been a lot of fun, most of it at Apple's expense. She never would have believed that Snow White could be so much fun to hang out with. It was no wonder why Apple enjoyed going home during breaks so much. Raven was even having a pleasant dream about it, at least until her mirror phone rang. She rolled over and grabbed the phone.
"What?!" She asked in a tired and cranky tone.
"Raven, wake up. It's important." It was the voice of her father, and he sounded a little panicked. That woke her right up.
"What's wrong?" She said, her voice echoed by Apple, who'd also be awakened by Raven's phone. The only difference was Apple was talking to Raven, who was talking to her father.
"I can't say, but I'll show you. Remember dear, the walls have ears." Her father's face vanished as the phone's camera switched view and focused on a large broken mirror. Raven could just make out the word "REVENGE" written with broken shards. She paled.
"Your dad is in a panic because her broke a mirror?" Apple asked with a yawn. "I know your family takes it's mirrors seriously, but isn't this a little overboard?"
"You don't understand Apple." Raven spoke softly. "I have something I need to tell you."
At the Snow White's Private Estate on the Castle Grounds, a shadowy figure skulked around deftly avoiding the guards. The figure jumped towards a partially open window on the third story using a magical boost. A moment later the window was open and the figure was inside. With no guards in sight, the figure glided through the halls until it found the doorway with the sound of snoring coming from it. The door was thrown open, banging loudly against the wall. Snow White sat up quickly.
"Miss me Snow Flake?" The figure asked.
"Eva?" Snow White questioned as the figure stepped into the light of the lone candle that was still lite.
"Oh, my dear Snow Flake, I am so looking forward to torturing you for your betrayal." Eva smiled and Snow White paled to nearly transparent.
"We have to tell the Headmaster." Apple cried as she ran towards the door. Raven ran after her nearly tackling Apple from behind to stop her. "Let go of me and watch what you're grabbing." Raven released her.
"We can't go to the Headmaster. If we do, he'll tell the authorities, and I doubt they'll try capture her again." Raven spoke softly. "They'll probably kill her on sight." Apple paused as the pleading in her roommate's voice.
"But she's probably going to go after my mother, we both know that. I've know my mom played a huge part in her defeat."
"I understand Apple, but she's still my mom, and I love her. I want a chance to get to her first. Maybe I can talk her out of whatever she has planned."
"But what if she kills my mom before we find her?" Apple asked.
"Trust me, I'm sure we will have some time before she does that." Raven replied as she started to get dressed. She put on the outfit that Darling Charming had designed for her. It would offer her more protection when she rode Nevermore, whom she was already calling for using a magic charm.
"Okay, I'll trust you." Apple replied as she too changed her clothes. "But I'm going with you." She too was wearing an outfit Darling had designed for her. "But what makes you so certain she won't have a chance to kill my mother first?"
"That's easy," Raven started as she opened the window. Nevermore was perched on a tree just under their window. Raven would often jump off the windowsill onto Nevermore's back, although she'd never done it with a passenger before. First time for everything, she thought as she took Apple's hand. She was looking a little nervous. "My mom likes to play with her victims first." Raven added as she jumped, pulling Apple with her. Apple's response that sounded like "what" quickly became a scream when she realized they were in free-fall. The pair landed on Nevermore's back, and Raven used a quick spell to keep them from sliding off just as Nevermore took to the air.
Nevermore could fly extremely fast when she needed to, and Raven pushed her to her limit. Nevermore did so gleefully. Raven never let her go all out while riding. IT was an exciting moment for the dragon. Raven and Apple didn't try to talk. The wind rushing around them at the speed they were going was too loud for them to hear each other. On the wings of Nevermore, they made to the Apple's home in less then an hour, much faster then the usual day long carriage ride. Upon landing, Raven released her spell and the pair slipped off the dragons back. Raven slipped off, Apple more fell off.
"Why didn't we just use the Well to travel?" Apple asked as she laid on the grounding breathing hard and shaking a little. Even Raven was having a little trouble slowing her breathing down.
"Because the School Well is set up to alert the guards if anyone uses it outside of normal hours." Raven remarked.
"How do you know that?" Apple asked as she got up. She directed Raven down a path away from the castle.
"Because I used the well once before outside of normal hours. The guards move pretty fast too." She replied. "Why are we going this way?"
"My mom snores, so she sleeps in a cottage in the back. She doesn't like to bother anyone."
"Snow White snores?"
"And she can be really loud. You know how most kids go to sleep in their parents bed when they are younger if they get scared?" Raven nodded. "My mother's snoring scared me more then any strange noises in the castle." The pair made it to the cottage, sneaking past the guards. Apple used her copy of the key to enter the house. She led Raven up a couple flights of stairs, when they heard a scream. Apple ran quickly with Raven hot on her heels.
"MOM!" Apple yelled as she threw open the door. Snow White sat up quickly, the blankets on the bed falling to the floor at the foot of the bed accompanied with a meaty thud. Obviously something was in the sheets. Raven made it to the door in time to catch Snow White stark naked on the bed and to see a shape moving under the blankets. Oh hex, I just walked in on my parents private time, Apple thought in horror. Suddenly the blankets erupted off the floor and standing there in all her naked glory was Eva Queen. Her hands were glowing with offensive spells ready to be cast.
"Mom?" Raven questioned, her mind moving a mile a minute as she looked over the scene.
"Hello Raven. It's pleasant to see you." Eva replied. Apple could tell something was very wrong with the scene she was looking at, but her brain was having trouble processing it. Instead she looked at her mother and commented on the something else that was out of place.
"Mother, why are you covered in wax?"
"I always believed it was a myth that you could pass out from laughing too hard." Snow White commented as she looked at the prone form of Eva Queen on the floor. The girls had covered her body with a blanket, and Snow had put on her robe.
"I've never heard my mother laugh like that before." Raven was still staring wide eyed at the Evil Queen.
"I've heard it a number of times." Snow confessed.
"She has a surprisingly beautiful laugh." Apple added.
"I've never heard my mother laugh like that before." Raven repeated as if stuck in a loop.
"What exactly is going on here?" Apple asked. Snow White sighed and turned from her daughter.
"It's a long story." She answered.
"It's not going to get any shorter the longer you wait." Eva Queen said as she rolled to her side, setting her elbow on the floor and resting her head on her hand.
"Your father and I love you very much Apple, but we never loved each other." Snow White pulled her robe a little tighter. She knew Apple would have to learn about this sooner or later, but she was really hoping Chance would be the one to tell her. Of course he was out on one of his camping trips with Jack and wouldn't be back for days. "We were best friends though, and that allowed us to be each other's beards."
"Beards?" Apple asked a little confused.
"It means they covered for each other to hide their real relationships." Raven explained.
"So you mean like Ashlynn and Hunter's relationship being hidden because Ashlynn and . . ." Apple paused. "Or maybe if Briar was interested in say Hopper, and wait. . ." Apple paused again. "Okay I got it Rosetta and. . ." Apple looked a little miffed. "Am I the only Princess who knows who her Prince Charming is?" She asked.
"Wow, I think you are." Raven commented with a laugh. "But yes it sounds like you pretty much have the point, I think."
"It's doubled too because I was interested in another woman, and your father in another man."
"Really, who's the man?" Apple asked a little too excited. Raven raised her brows in question. She quickly did a mental jump when she remembered seeing some story about Sparrow Hood and Dexter on Apple's mirror pad. Apple's into BL isn't she? "Is it the Good King?" She asked.
"You think it's my father?" Raven asked.
"It would be a perfect set up wouldn't it?" Apple remarked with a flick of her wrist.
"No, no no, it's not him, and really I think it's up to your father to tell you." Snow replied amused by her daughter's excitement, and Raven's irritation.
"Yes, let your Charming King tell you all about it." Eva smirked. "And don't forget you could ask your Uncle Jack."
"Are you saying? But that can't be right. Dad and Uncle Jack are both really manly. I don't see how either of them could be the woman in the relationship."
"Are you saying my father isn't . . ."Raven stopped herself and sighed. "Nevermind." She loved her dad, but he really didn't appear very manly. He was a great father, and he was strong man, but he really didn't look it.
"Hold on, if you're saying what it sounds like you're saying, then which of us, is the manly one?" The Evil Queen asked, staring down her nose at Apple, her glare meant to intimidate.
"That's easy, you are." Apple replied. "My mother is the very appearance of the flower of femininity." Snow held her hands over her mouth, not for surprise or horror, but to keep from laughing. Raven herself was biting her bottom lip hard enough to draw blood to stop herself. "Of course that's all very physical. Personality wise, my mother is closer to a perverted carriage driver." That was it. They all erupted in laughter. The Evil Queen unsure if Apple had set that up on purpose or purely by accident. The laughter increased when Snow stopped and asked her daughter a question.
"Wait, a perverted carriage driver?" Apple just nodded not able to stop laughing. A few laughter filled minutes later Snow continued her story with added commentary and details by Eva Queen.
Eira White was in the dead section of the enchanted forest, a mace in her hands. She continued to swing it with wild purpose, breaking apart the dead trees. She was angry, very angry. Eira was so tired of the stupid Damsel in Distress class, worse yet, for her part she was always locked in the glass coffin. She was certain she was becoming claustrophobic. She tried and tried to get her class changed, but the Headmaster would have none of it. The only thing that made her feel better was breaking things. She was always glad her father had taught her how to wield a weapon.
"My my my, the little Snow Flake has some anger issues doesn't she?" A voice rang out. Eria stopped mid-swing and looked in the direction of the voice. Eva Queen stood there in her knee high stiletto boots, fishnet tights, Leather corset mini-dress and short cloak.
"Don't call me Snow, you harlot." Eira Replied. "I hate being called Snow." She stood up and marched towards the future Evil Queen. Eira was dressed in a modified Ever After High Gym Uniform, hers consisting of bloomers, a form fitting t-shirt, cut off to be a crop top, and a pair of wedge sneakers.
"Well, Snow Flake, since you're both Snow AND a Flake, why don't we see how good you really are." Eva cast a quick spell and formed a sword and shield for herself. Eria's anger was almost obscene as she launched her attack on Eva. The Evil Queen pulled her shield up to block with hardly any time to do so. She couldn't believe the daughter of Snow White could be so brutal. More impressive was the skill she was showing even in her anger.
Eva normally enjoyed banter when she fought someone, but she needed to concentrate on Eria's attacks, to block or dodge. She wasn't even getting a chance to attack back. It was truly impressive. Still she knew Eira would make a mistake or tire herself out, and Eva was just hoping it would happen soon. She was having fun though. No one would ever fight against her because she was the Evil Queen, and they expected her to cheat. She knew cheating was not the best way to win. Cheating in a battle like this was dishonorable, but mostly made it less fun to gloat.
Eira laughed with one of her swings of the mace. It took away Eva's concentration for a moment. She'd been so engulfed in the attacks, she'd been ignoring Eira herself. Eira was smiling and looked to be honestly enjoying herself. It stunned the Evil Queen. Hex, she was even starting to give Eva a chance to attack. A strong back and forth started between the pair.
"I'm exhausted." Eira cried as she finally fell to her knees and then onto her back.
"I win." Eva added as she fell to her knees a moment later, then face planted into the dirt. "How long were we out here?" She mumbled into the ground before turning her head to look at her timepiece. She really didn't even need to look, the sky had darkened significantly while they'd spared.
"It's been more then two hours!" Eira shouted. "I can't believe we went for that long. We have some crazy staying power." Eva looked at her. Did the daughter of Snow White really just say that like that? Eva rolled onto her side facing Eira, who did the same so they were facing each other.
"You are not what I expected." They spoke at the same time. The pair started to giggle and then talk. Before they knew it, it was full on dark in the woods. They not only had to leave the most dangerous part after dark, but they had to sneak back onto school grounds before anyone noticed they were still missing.
After battling a small pack of feral dire wolves, surprisingly to Eira, Eva did her best to do little harm to the wolves, they made it to the Thorn Hedge. Eira sighed. She had no idea how to get through it. Eva on the other hand smirked as she cast a spell. It gave the pair of them the ability to partially see through the hedge.
"We need to find a thin spot, and watch for the guards." She whispered. Eira nodded and they set out to work. They found a thin spot near the corner, where they waited, watched and timed the guards. Once they had the timing, Eva used her magic to create a flaming oval in the air. "I'm going to send this through. We need to jump quickly. It'll take a little longer for the burned edges to grow back, but that only gives us a couple of extra seconds." Eria nodded.
When the guard walked past and out of sight, Eva sent the oval to burn a passage. Eira grabbed Eva's hand and they jumped into the hole, rolling as they landed. The pair smiled at each other. Eira still holding Eva's hand rushed towards Rose O'Hair's window. She was a heavy sleeper and her hair always grew out the window at night. Eira grabbed an end and swung it until it got stuck on the metal shudder. Eva was very impressed by her ingenuity. She'd never thought to us the O'Hair girl's hair to climb back into the dorms. Since she always chopped her hair off in the morning, it wouldn't even matter how messed up it was by use.
"Why don't we meet again after class tomorrow, same place?" Eira whispered. Eva nodded. After sneaking out of Rose's room, they went their separate ways.
The pair got together at least three times a week to spar, talk or just do homework together. They almost never allowed time to get away from them again, like the first time. It was after one of their matches on softer ground that Eria questioned Eva's choice of footwear.
"You always wear stiletto heels, how do you not sink in the ground when we fight? I know you're not always on your toes." Eva grinned, as if she'd been waiting for this moment.
"Take a look at the ground." She suggested. Eira did so and studied where they fought. She didn't see any footprints left by Eva.
"You use magic not to sink in." She was proud of her answer.
"Nope, no magic used for that, no staying on my toes either." All Eria was seeing was the prints left by her wedges. Wait, those aren't all my prints. She realized.
"Your prints are wedges also. You're using magic to disguise you're heels." She sounded rather proud of herself.
"Close. I created a spell to make an invisible wedge around my heel. It makes it so that my stilettos don't sink into the ground, but also makes it nearly impossible for anyone to find my tracks, since they look for the obvious signs of a spiked heel and not a wedge heel, and I do love my spikes."
"Can you do that to a pair of mine?" Eira asked.
"Well Snow Flake, it only lasts for half a day, then it needs to be recast. I'm still trying to make it last longer or better yet, permanent."
"You are absolutely amazing." Eira smiled, not realizing how close they'd gotten while they talked. She didn't know what made her do it, but Eira leaned the rest of the way in and kissed Eva, who was taken by surprise. She stepped back and tripped over her own foot. In her attempt to not fall, she grabbed Eira and took her down with her. In books and stories they would have ended up in accidentally kissing, but in reality they ended up hitting each other's heads. Eria rolled off rubbing her forehead. Eva curled up in the fetal position because not only had her head been hit, she was kneed in the gut.
"You are a terrible kisser." Eva gasped out as she tried to catch her breath.
"Funny, my kiss seemed to knock you off your feet."
"Laughter hurts, don't make me." Eva gasped trying to not laugh. It took her a few minutes to recover. She was almost certain she would end up with a bruise. She however was not sure how to deal with the kiss. Eira for her part didn't say anything else about it.
The kiss stayed between them for a number of weeks afterwards. They still got together and had fun, but it felt a little awkward. One day after sparring when Eva returned to her room, Scarlett Hood, her roommate and probably second best friend after Badwolf, was waiting for her.
"Okay, you've been moping around her for the past few weeks, and I'm getting a little tired of it." Scarlett complained finally. Eva sighed.
"I think, I think I may be in love with someone, and I don't know how to act?" She admitted. It was pointless to hide it, Scarlett would get it out of her eventually.
"Does he like you too?" She asked. Eva bit her lower lip a moment.
"I believe so. We kissed, and it wasn't I who initiated it."
"Sounds pretty cut and dry then to me."
"You don't understand, we both have destinies that are very counter to us having a relationship together." Eva rested her face in her hands, rubbing a little as she did so. "She has her prince to wed, and I . . ." She trialed off. Did Eva just say "she"? Scarlet was surprised by that revelation.
"Let me tell you a story, there was a young woman who was in love, it was a love that was destined not to be though." Scarlet stated with a smile. "You see, she was in love with her enemy. This isn't a case of their families just feuding. He was literally supposed to eat her." Scarlet paused a moment and saw Eva's head whip up. She smiled at her friend. "And so they worked out a plan to keep him alive after their story finished with the help of another friend who was also involved." She cocked her head lost for a moment in thought. "I know that yours probably isn't quite like that young woman's problem, but maybe you can still work something out."
"Isn't quite like it Scarlet, it's nearly exactly like it." Eva seemed thrilled.
"What do you mean nearly exactly like it, I don't think you are supposed to be eaten by your enemy slash would be lover."
"No, no not like that. I'm supposed to poison her." Scarlet's eyes opened so wide Eva thought for certain they would pop out.
"You and Eira?" She asked her mouth barely working. Eva nodded. "That's a lot more complicated then Wolfy and me." Scarlet was so startled by this revelation, especially since she almost never saw Eva and Eira together. The rare times that they were together on campus it usually ended in some more of verbal insult match. "Your story is far more complicated then ours. I figured you were talking about someone else, like, well I don't really know who."
"You're right, it is complicated, and I need to tell her how I feel, but I want to make it special." Scarlet sighed. She would do whatever she could do to support her friend, after all, Eva had already supported her through so much.
"Well, the True Hearts Day dance is tomorrow night. You could do something romantic then." She suggested.
"That is a hexcellent idea. I'll have to come up with something quickly, and make sure she's there."
-Break-
"You still celebrated True Hearts Day back then?" Apple asked surprised. She'd thought it was hidden away much longer ago then that.
"That was the last one until your friend Cupid had the underground one." Snow White admitted. "I'm pretty sure it was because of us that Grimm cancelled it."
"It was?" Eva asked. She didn't know that part of the story.
"Yes, and I'll get to that eventually." Snow White continued her story.
Eira was mad. Weeks had gone by and Eva refused to talk about the kiss. She still spent time with her, but it felt weird. Eira wanted to kiss her again, but she feared losing their friendship all together. It was leaving her frazzled, so when Eva purposely bumped into her while they were walking, she lost it.
"Watch where you're going Snow Flake." Eva taunted like the bully everyone thought she was. It wasn't the first time Eva had used her pet name to Eira like an insult in front of others, but this time, with everything else, it was too much.
"I told you, don't call me Snow! I don't like being called SNOW you dried up old HAG!" She screamed. The crowd forming around them gasped. Everyone knew you did not make a negative comment about the Evil Queen's appearance. Eva Blinked.
"Old Hag, I'm two months younger then you SNOWY SNOW SNOW SNOW!" Eira lunged at the future Evil Queen. Eva was taken totally by surprise and went down hard. The pair rolled around the ground pulling at each other's hair and clothing. The sheer blouse Eva wore over her corset was fully ripped from her body by Eira. In response Eva tore Eira's Skirt down the side, causing her to lose it all the way and the coverage it provided. Everyone there got to see Eira's strawberry panties. Eva's tights were ripped to shreds, hair pulling, slapping and even punching started to occur. A pair of Female Guards just stood there and watched, no one sure if their lack of doing anything was because they were enjoying the show, or because they didn't know exactly how to get the two off each other.
"What in Ever After is going on here!" The Headmaster shouted. The guards both made their moves and pulled the pair apart. Eva had a bloody nose, a black eye, tattered clothing, and numerous other scratches and bruises. Eira was in much the same condition, but instead of a black eye, she had a fat lip and both her nostrils were spewing blood.
"I realize you two are destined to be enemies in your story, but that is no excuse for acting like a couple of animals. You are both confined to your rooms for the next thirty hours. Take them away." The guards dragged the pair to their respective dorms where they were magically locked in. A nursing fairy was sent to each room in order to take care of their injuries. Once the Fairies finished, their roommates would be allowed to enter.
"I think she hates me." Eva's words were filled with sadness as she spoke to Scarlet. "I've never seen her act like that."
"No one has ever seen her act like that. I have to say I was impressed by your immaturity as well."
"Thanks, I appreciate the support." She plopped her face into her pillow and mumbled something to the effect of , "I don't know what to do now." Scarlet, who was good at understanding muffled speak, smiled.
"If you truly love her, you meet her as planned and tell her." The future Evil Queen muffled something not so nice about where she could stick her ideas. Scarlet just padded her on the head.
Eira's roommate had decided to avoid going back to her dorm after that fight, leaving the future Snow White on her own to cry out her anxiety. Even she couldn't believe what she'd done. She sobbed into her pillow for almost an hour once the Nurse fairy left. Once her tears were done, she went to change her clothes. It was as she took her vest off, that she saw the note fall out its seam. Eira leaned over and picked it up.
-Meet me in the storage area of the Grimmnasium at five 'til midnight. - The note was in Eva's handwriting.
"She must have bumped me to hide this on me." Eira was excited to see the note. There couldn't be too many reasons why Eva would want to get alone with her on True Hearts Day. Then she touched one of her bruises and was reminded what she had done, how much she had lost control. Eira felt sick to her stomach. Would Eva even show up after this? The dance will have already started by the time we were able to leave our rooms. Everything was such a mess. Nearly as bad was knowing she wouldn't be able to go shopping for the perfect outfit.
"We both needed help getting ready for the dance. Neither of us had an outfit picked out, and we both needed help covering up the left over signs of our fights." Snow mentioned with a little smile. "It was a little nice being a little pampered in that way."
"The challenge was the dresses." Eva added. "We didn't have the same technology you do, so we had to describe what we wanted, give sizes and hope our friends could get something that would work."
"Things turned out pretty much all right for us. We met at the dance. Eva looked at me, and told me she was in love with me. She even gave me a ring." Snow smiled and lifted up her necklace. On it was a ring that appeared like a dragon wrapped in a loop.
"I always wondered where you got that." Apple remarked excitedly.
"Who would ever have thought the Evil Queen was a romantic." Raven commented. The story she was hearing was certainly not the woman she'd known as her mother. The woman Raven pictured from the stories she was hearing was someone she would have been friends with. She'd always felt more like her mother and herself were borderline enemies when she was growing up.
"What we didn't know, was that Headmaster Grimm had seen us kissing." Snow remarked. "But that becomes important later. Back then he didn't care as much about student affairs, as long as the students still fulfilled their destinies."
"That would explain why you still had True Hearts Day back then." Apple added. Snow White and the Evil Queen both nodded.
"Our problems came when we tried to change our destiny in order to be together. We knew we needed help, after all we weren't just trying to change little things here or there in the book, we literally wanted a total rewrite of the ending. I knew we would need some magical assistance, so I went to get help. Unfortunately I took it upon myself to get that help and asked the wrong person. With Eva being in the story, she couldn't use her magic, and the Dark Fairy wasn't exactly known for helping, so I went to the one person who was on the fence when it came to morals, Hailey Hagyth."
"I didn't tell her exactly what I wanted to do, just that I wanted to be able to change the ending. She agreed to help, then she turned me into Headmaster Grimm." Snow said venomously. "I was called to his office for some counseling."
"Ah Miss White, I'm glad you were able to see me today." Grimm started. Eira already knew why she was there. She'd heard Hailey snitch on her earlier that day. She'd never been so relieved to have only told half-truths in her life. Since Hailey only knew that Chance and herself wanted to avoid getting married, because they were both in love with other people. She never told Hailey whom they were each in love with.
"I understand that you and your Prince Charming are unhappy about the ending of your story." Milton Grimm stated, his voice sounding a little colder then normal.
"I wouldn't exactly call it unhappy." Eira replied chipperly to try and lighten the mood. Grimm would have none of that.
"This is a very serious matter Miss White." He replied, his mood was not improved. "As I am sure you are aware, we have a delicate balance in the portrayals of our Fairy Tales."
"I kn…"
"Shh." Grimm interrupted. "We can update certain aspects of the stories, make them a little more modern." He stated in a no nonsense sort of way. "When we try to do more then that, we risk the destruction of that Story and the players from it."
"But."
"Shhh." He held his finger up, more forceful then before. "What we cannot do, is make a major change to the story just because of a character's selfishness. I understand that you believe you have found True Love outside of your story, and I blame myself for allowing such frivolity as True Hearts Day to continue on here."
"You're wrong." Eria stated in anger. "If our Fairy Tales are suppose to end with a happily ever after, then we should be able to find our true love and bring them in to create it." She moved to stand up to him, physically, only realizing when she got close how small she really was.
"My dear Miss White, I do not like to be very forceful in things, but I have been given the duty of making certain everything goes as dictated." He walked over to the Story Book Of Legends and flipped through a few pages. "Ah this should work with a minimum of consequence. Please take a look out the window at the quad where the students are playing Dodge Book." Eira did as he said, preparing her next argument for this debate. She just knew she could win it with the right words.
"Please take a look at the Four Little Pigs on the field. She glanced at them, and then back at Grimm. He had produced his pen and was making marks in the Book. Her attention went back to the field, where Chance and was about to throw the Book Ball at one of the Pigs, when suddenly it vanished from sight. She gasped, her eyes wide with surprise. What made it truly terrifying was that no one on the field was reacting to the pig's disappearance.
"It is a shame to make such a change. Straw and Sticks, and Dirt and Bricks rolls off the tongue much better then Straw and Sticks and Bricks." He commented in a way that made Eira Question his sanity. He turned to her with a little smile on his face. "You and I are the only ones who will ever know that the story use to have Four Little Pigs. For everyone else, there has only ever been Three Little Pigs. The Pig who made his home from dirt never existed."
"How, How could you?" She asked her voice barely a squeak.
"Now just imagine if I did that with your Evil Queen, and replaced her with her cousin." He stated. "And if you weren't here at the time, you would never even remember her." Eira opened her mouth but no words came out. She could feel tears draining down her face. She had never been so scared in her entire life. "Needless to say, you will not mention word of anything we discussed or that you saw today, otherwise. . ." He held his pen up. Eira just nodded.
"Now, I am not a cold hearted man. I will make certain that the Evil Queen does survive your story, however between now and then, you will both act your parts, and that includes breaking off your current relationship." Every time he spoke he made certain to wave his pen around as a reminder of her power. "That way you will both be able to sire the next telling, after all, direct descendants always make the story more powerful." He smiled at her, actually smiled. "You may go, but I would suggest you wash your face right away, you're make-up is running."
Eira left Grimm's office and went on autopilot to the nearest girls' room, washed her face and reapplied her make-up. The whole thing was made even more surreal when she heard everyone making fun of Chance for throwing the Book Ball at an empty spot.
"So he actually removed a character from a story?" Raven asked. She thought Milton Grimm was strict, but she never really considered him to be a villain, and based on this alone he was probably the greatest villain in all of Ever After.
"That is like so evil, even more then you." Apple stated looking at Eva. She frowned a little at Apple. She hadn't really looked at it that way. It was a little depressing to have the reputation for being the greatest evil ever, only to have it snatched away so easily. Raven looked over at her mother thoughtfully.
"So when you left the word 'Revenge' in the glass shards you meant revenge on Milton Grim? I thought for certain you were coming here to torture and kill Snow White."
"Oh I was coming here to torture and kill Snow White. I didn't know anything about this when I got here. Practically the first thing she yelled when I showed up was, I did it to save your life." Eva stated doing a mocking imitation of Snow White's voice. "I didn't kill her, but you know, I did torture her a little." She smirked. It took both Raven and Apple a moment to realize what she meant, and by then, Snow White had a full body blush so strong, it could be seen through the material of her robe.
They couldn't help but look at the redish-pink glow coming off her body. Eva start to giggle, actually giggle. Raven and Apple joined her, although their giggling was of the uncomfortable sort.
"Well it's such a pleasure to see you all in such good spirits, when we have a very serious matter at hand." A new voice leaked into the room. Eva, Apple and Raven all froze hearing it. Only Snow didn't seem surprised by the newcomer.
Standing before them was the Dark Fairy wearing a white, A-line dress, with a diamond shaped cut out at her cleavage. The skirt stopped at her knees where a pair of simple yet elegant gladiator style silver heels took over. A silver watch, was on her left wrist, a silver bangle on her right, finished with a simple silver necklace at her neck over the collar of the dress. She had small silver hoops in her ears. Her stunning beauty was only enhanced with her wings flared out behind her, showing her annoyance at the group.
"What are you doing here?" Eva asked. The Dark Fairy glanced at Snow White and nodded.
"Destiny's been helping me free you." Snow admitted. "She's been teaching me how to use Dark Magic."
"Mother!" Apple cried.
"Destiny?" Raven asked, surprised to hear the Dark Fairy's actual name.
"You've been learning Dark Magic?" A stunned Eva asked.
"Ever since Grimm locked you away. I went to Destiny for help since she was the second most powerful magic user in Ever After. She taught me how to wield, grow and transfer the magic." Snow explained, sounding a little proud of herself. The Dark Fairy settled into a plush chair in the corner. She knew the story would need to be told before they could move on.
"We found a spell that allowed us to turn the Mirror in the Evil Queen's castle into a magical funnel. I needed to make specific calculations for it, since there were certain times that I could go there and pour power into the mirror to give to Eva to make her stronger. What we found out however, was that some of the magic was being diverted elsewhere."
"You see Eva's Mirror Prison was connected to 3 mirrors. The one in the Queen Castle, one in Milton Grimm's Office, and the last one, we learned belongs to the Hagyth Family."
"What?" Eva asked. "Grimm had spoken to me a number of times, as has Raven. But why does Hailey have one?"
"From my research on her family, and I have been doing THAT for a long time, her mirror is a siphon. She's pulling magic from whomever is in the prison and using it to increase her own power." The Dark Fairy added. "At least half the magic Snow would pour into the Mirror Prison would be taken by the siphon eventually."
"We realized it would take even longer to free Eva then we'd originally calculated. And just to up the difficulty, there were only certain times we could do it. In fact, the reason I gave the speech I gave was to distract Milton so Destiny could really pour in the magic in using his mirror."
"We were running out of time. According to the calculations I made and Destiny confirmed, the next time I could pass magical energy through was going to be after you both graduated." Snow stated softly. Apple frowned when she heard that.
"And you were afraid that once we graduated, Snow White would start over again you wouldn't survive to finish the process." She remarked. Snow White nodded.
"But why the one in Headmaster Grimm's office?" Raven wondered aloud.
"When we started the process, we also converted the mirror in your castle into a portal so Eva could get out that way, instead of just a communicator, like in Grimm's office. The problem was it added a little instability to the mirror. If we poured too much magic into it, it could break. We figured that since Grimm's was always meant to be a portal, it could take the magic." Snow explained. "Then we counted on Eva going through the mirror at her castle, rather then the one in Grimm's office."
"What we didn't count on was Eva using the bulk of the magic I poured in to create a bomb to break out sooner." Destiny grumbled. "This is why I hate dealing with you two idiots." Eva looked like she was ready to thrown down at the comment but Snow White stopped her. "We need to move forward with our plan. I believe there is enough residual energy in the mirror prison to hide the fact that you broke out to give us just under a day. If you had let the energy absorb, you would have just been able to materialize outside your mirror instead of destroying it and given us nearly a week." She aimed the last comment to Eva. Eva cocked her head. She knew nothing about what else the plan entailed so it was harder to be angry.
"But with less then a day, can we go through with it?" Snow asked. She could picture herself running away with Eva to keep her free if need be. She'd given up much of her life to Ever After and felt she deserved a chance for her happily ever after. The only problem was in order to do that, she would need to leave her daughter, and that didn't feel right.
"We can, but it needs to be modified, and we need their help." She pointed to Apple and Raven. The pair both looked up at the Dark Fairy, curious. Their mothers looked at her as well, but Snow White spoke, since only she knew what the plan was.
"We can't. It would be too dangerous for them." She stated. Eva looked at her lover.
"What exactly is your plan?" She was still the Evil Queen, and breaking out of Prison and staying out was high on her concern list.
"Originally we were going to restart your Snow White Story. However we no longer have the time to make that happen, with how involved the process is. What we can do, is force their Snow White Story to start early. We have much to do still, and little time to prepare. If we succeed we can end the curse on the Storybook of Legends and remove Grimm's power."
"Curse?" Raven asked.
"During our research, we found that there was a Curse placed on the Storybook of Legends. It's why Grimm can make changes whenever he wants and no one else can access outside of Legacy Day. Destiny was going to use her magic to unlock the book, and we were going to reactivate our stories." Snow explained.
"But we don't have time for the fineness needed to do that, now we need brute force. That's where you two come in."
"So you need us to follow our destinies?" Apple asked. She already so Raven look away.
"Yes and no. We need to change a number of things in the story." She remarked and looked at Raven. "But we can only do it with both of you, otherwise we can't force the start." Apple moved over to Raven and spoke softly to her.
"I know you want to do everything you can to not become the Evil Queen, but. . ." Apple was cut off by Raven's finger to her lips.
"I didn't want to become what my mother became. I thought it was the story that did it, but now I think I know why she did it. When I was younger, she told me she was going to take over Ever After for Love. Now that I know everything our mother's have told us, and I can understand it. It's still not a good reason for everything she did, but she's been punished for it. The people who caused it however have not and need to be brought to justice. I'm in." Raven smiled and Apple hugged her.
"If they kiss, I'm out of here and you're all on your own." Destiny shook her head. All that lovey-dovey crap drove her nuts.
"Well if the kids are game, so am I." Eva commented. Snow looked at her and their daughters. She was a little hesitant about letting them play such a large part in this, plus running away seemed so much more exciting and romantic. She frowned a moment.
"I'm in. Lets get ready."