Hi, everyone! First of all, I wanna say a big thank you for all the reviews, follows and favorites, I'm so glad you liked it and I loved reading all the reviews, even if it's only you telling me to update, because that means you like it and wanna read more. So thanks to everyone!
Here's the second chapter, and I'm already writing the next one, so if you have any ideas or would like to see something in the next chapter, just tell me, it could help me write!
The chapters are gonna be kind of long, I hope you don't mind.
And I wanted to clear out that I put Henry as a main character too because he will be, but it's just gonna take a little more for him to show up, don't worry.
Snow stared at her own reflection through her mirror. Her eyes were so red and swollen; her head was killing her, it was probably midnight, but she couldn't sleep. She wasn't even tired; she just wanted to know how and where Regina was.
Her father had ordered for the guards to lock her up in her own room. She screamed and cried and kicked the door, but nothing would work. The hours passed, she kept crying, and no one would open the door. She just needed to talk to her father and make him see clearly.
Regina wasn't evil. She wasn't an evil witch. She just got control of herself because the bandits were going to hurt them; she was protecting them. How couldn't her father see that?
The fourteen year old princess quickly looked up to hear her father's voice near her room. She ran to the door and hit it with her fists and feet. "Father, I need to talk to you! You have to hear me!"
"We'll talk in the morning." The king's voice was heard from the other side, but Snow had enough. He was hearing her out.
The princess ran back to the large mirror standing in the corner of her room and stood in front of it, carefully watching it. It was a present of her father when she turned thirteen, telling her she was becoming a beautiful young woman that needed to see her own reflection every time she wanted. Snow frowned and stepped aside, throwing the mirror to the floor, and jumping a little bit for all the mess and sound it made.
"Snow?! Open the door!"
Snow smiled to herself and stepped back, letting out a small moan to feel something cutting her feet. She looked down to see small pieces of glass under them, and instead of jumping off it, she pressed harder, seeing more blood coming out from them. She didn't know why she was doing it but it felt good – and maybe her father would finally listen to her with all this.
A pair of arms wrapped around her and took her out of the glass she was standing on, Johanna quickly appearing on view, standing in front of her and bending down to look at her feet. Her green eyes didn't look down at her, didn't even register all the people that ran inside her room to clean the mess she'd made, two doctors quickly standing to her sides to check her out. Her eyes stared into her father's brown eyes; he was standing next to the door, confused and alarmed.
She frowned, and she was sure she'd never looked at him with such hate and anger. "So can we talk now, father?"
Soon enough her feet were covered by headbands, while she was sitting across her father. They were in his desk, and neither of them was talking, only silently looking at each other. Snow didn't know why he was so carefully watching her, but she knew her reasons. She was trying to figure out why he would think Regina was evil; why would he treat her like she was nothing more than an evil witch that had to be killed.
"Where's Regina?" She was the first one to speak up, having enough of the silence and just wanting to know where her stepmother was. The princess knew she was probably locked up in the dungeons if she was really treated like a prisoner. Snow was hoping she was wrong and she was comfortable in some guest room, at least.
"I know you're angry at me, my dear. You need to understand that she's probably bewitched you, that's why you still think she's good. But I will find the cure, my princess, and we'll be fine. We'll be happy."
"We'll never be happy." Snow spat out, angry and disgusted at her father's words. She couldn't believe he really believed Regina had bewitched her – that was out of question. She loved her because she was her stepmother, she was her family. She wasn't a witch, she wasn't a monster. "We'll never be happy without Regina. You won't hurt her, father."
The king straightened his posture and cleared his throat, his hands coming together on the desk and his eyes slowly showing anger. But Snow didn't move, she kept her angry eyes on her as he opened his mouth again. "She killed those bandits. She ripped a man's heart out –"
Snow couldn't hold it any longer as she slammed her fist on the table, startling her father. "She was protecting me! They were going to hurt us, you know that!"
"We were going to save you both. She had no right to kill them – much less with magic. Dark magic."
For a moment, the memory came back to Snow's mind. It was like she was so focused on wanting to know how Regina was she forgot about it all. It was like she'd forgotten about the men flying through the air; her stepmother's hand getting into a man's chest and crushing his heart to ashes. She had chills to remember the fear about the possibility of Regina hurting her too. Her eyes built up tears to remember her stepmother's dark eyes, full of anger and hate, thirsting for death.
That wasn't the Regina she'd known – the woman that saved her from the runaway horse wasn't that woman, killing anyone that stood in her way. Small tears started to make their way down her face, starting to believe her father was right.
She had no right to kill them – who knew if she wouldn't lose her temper again to do something similar?
"It's okay, sweetheart." Her father said, reaching out to take her hand, but as soon as his fingers touched hers, she moved her hand away, and soon remembered something else.
Regina actually stopped when she told her to stop. She remembered her eyes full of confusion as she looked around, seeing what she'd done. The princess closed her eyes and remembered the fear on her stepmother's face to know she was afraid of her; the relief on her face when Snow told her she wasn't a monster.
Regina loved her. She thought the bandits were going to hurt her, and she didn't hesitate to attack because that was what mothers did – any threat to the children had to be eliminated, that was what she'd read so many time in her books about animals. Mothers protected their children, no matter what.
"You said you were going to save us." Snow murmured, looking up to her father, tears no longer running down her face. "You were going to kill those bandits, weren't you?"
"They were going to kidnap you, Snow. Of course I was going to kill them."
"So what's the difference?" Her father actually looked confused at that as Regina's voice echoed in her head.
"You're turning into a woman, and you need to know that many people see women as weak people."
"Is it because she's a woman? What's the difference, father? You were going to kill them, but she did it first, to protect me, just like you were going to do. You're scared of her magic, but there's nothing to be scared of because she only used it for protection!"
"She's an evil witch, Snow White." King Leopold's features hardened as he moved his hand away from his daughter's. "I'm not gonna be married to a witch – to someone that can rip hearts out! She's cursed you, and I will demand her to tell me where's the cure for your curse before –" Snow narrowed her eyes at him, and he closed his mouth, to then let out a long sigh. He didn't want to say it, but Snow wasn't that stupid.
Her green eyes filled up with tears at the thought. "You can't kill her. She's family. You will never love her like you loved mother, you don't even love her, but I do. And she loves me. We're family – you cannot break that. You can't take her from me."
"I'm doing what's best for you, my dear. You're not seeing clearly because she's bewitched for you to love her, because I know you'd never agree with a woman that rips hearts out. I'm not going to let anyone with dark magic get near you, Snow. It's for your own sake. Even if you're not cursed, you're still a child. You don't know what's best."
"I do know what's best for me. Losing my mother once again it's not what's best for me. Please, father. You can't kill her – if you hurt her, I will never forgive you. I will hate you forever."
The king seemed to try to consider her words for a minute, till he shook his head and cleared his throat. "You're talking under the curse; I know you don't mean it." He looked up to the guards standing behind her and shook his wrist. "Take her to her room."
Snow got up and slammed her hands on the table; anger lighting up in her green eyes like never before. "You won't hurt her. I won't let you."
The king rose from his chair, but she kept her eyes on him, knowing she had to keep her gaze just like Regina taught her she had to do while arguing with someone. "I am your father, and I am the King, you're not telling me what I can do."
Snow didn't say anything else as a guard took one of her arms and took her out of the room. She didn't scream or cried or kicked this time as they lead her to her room, but when she was about to get there, she stood in place and looked next to her right; the bathroom's door.
"I have to go to the bathroom. Please, wait for me out here."
The guards looked conflicted to each other, but she didn't care as she got into the bathroom and closed the door behind her. The girl wanted to throw herself to the floor and cry herself to sleep, but she couldn't waste any time. She knew she had time to convince her father to let Regina go; to convince him she was good, but she needed to see Regina. She needed to know she was okay.
Fourteen years inside this castle taught her a few things, like the secrets tunnels in the walls, the secrets doors that were in a few room. Snow walked over the bathtub and gently pushed the wall, as that secret door opened. She got into it and heard as the door closed behind her.
She had to be on her knees and hands and crawl; she wasn't that little anymore. She started crawling, without knowing where exactly to go, since when she was a little girl and she found out about this secret tunnel, she tried not to take the path that she knew would lead to the dungeons.
Her white dress was getting so dirty, her knees were hurting and her hands were shaking since she hadn't eaten all day. But she kept crawling, until she knew she'd been crawling so much that she had to be in the dungeons. There was a little door to her right, and she hoped this secret door was hidden from the guards that had to keep an eye on the prisoners.
Her hand pushed into the wall, as the door moved to aside. Her head poked out as she looked around; she was near the cells and away from the guards, who were probably in the front door. She slowly got out as the small door closed behind her.
"Regina…" Snow murmured to herself, looking around. There was a large hall, lots of cell there. She started walking through it, looking in every cell, and looking back in case the guards would decide to come. She knew that Regina was here, and she also knew that there were no others prisoners but her. They never had prisoners. "Regina?" Snow raised her voice a little bit, in hopes that her stepmother would hear her.
"Snow?" She heard in the distance.
Snow looked forward and frowned. Of course they would keep her in the last cell; how could her father be so cruel? What was he thinking? The young princess ran up to the last cell as she didn't see anything but darkness, till a small figure stepped up in the moon's light.
Regina couldn't even stand up; she had to crawl to the bars. She was free of makeup and there were dark circles under her eyes; her hands were shaking as she tried to hold on to the bars. Snow slowly walked the steps that separated from her and knelt down in front of her, her hand wrapping around the shaking hand holding on the bars.
"What are you doing here?" Her stepmother's weak voice said. Snow had never hear her talking in such weak voice; she'd heard her talking in a low voice, but never weak. Never like this. "You shouldn't be here."
"I'm trying to convince him. I'm gonna convince him. I'm not gonna let them hurt you, Regina. I know you're not a witch. I know you're not evil. They just can't see it, but I will make them."
Regina looked up to see the princess' eyes. They were red, swollen, filled with tears. She wanted to reach out and touch her face, but she was so weak. She was so weak without her magic; whatever spell they put on her was taking all her strength. It'd been only a few hours, but it felt like an eternity. She was getting weaker with every passing hour.
"You're cold." Snow whispered as her warm, pale hand rubbed her cold hand. "I'm sorry, Regina. I should have never gotten away with that little boy. This is my fault."
"It's not your fault." Regina murmured, taking in a deep breath. "You were trying to help someone, and that's good. I – I just had to control myself."
"We've got time, father's gonna clear his mind, he's just impacted with all he saw, just like I was, but I knew better. I knew you were trying to protect me because you love me, right?"
Regina looked up to her green eyes, but couldn't say anything. Last time she told someone she loved what she felt, his heart ended up being ashes. Her fingers clung to the bars as the image of Daniel's lifeless body in her arms came to her mind. This was going to be her end; they were going to kill her tomorrow, Snow just didn't know that. She believed they had time, but the execution was going to be tomorrow. And she wasn't going to tell her.
She didn't want Snow to see all that. They were going to probably burn her alive; that was what they did to witches. She was going to finally see Daniel again. It was okay for her, if it wasn't for the fourteen year old girl in front of her. She'd leave Snow behind, but she wasn't going to be in danger. The king could be many things, but hurting his daughter – not physically anyway – wasn't one of those things.
Snow was going to be okay, and she was going to be with Daniel again.
"You should go, Snow."
"I'm gonna get you out of here, Regina."
Regina smiled at the girl's endless hope. No matter what her father would say about her, she knew Snow would always defend her. The king and everyone were right, though. She was an evil witch; she had darkness in her, she enjoyed her dark magic, she could kill anyone that would step in her way to protect what she loved, she didn't care. But Snow still believed in her, she still looked up at her with those big and hopeful green eyes, she always saw the best in everyone, and the young Queen was glad she wasn't the exception.
She wanted Snow to remember her like that; a good stepmother that just wanted to save her and lost control of herself and not as someone who enjoyed killing everyone that dared to hurt her.
"Remember what I've always told you." Snow frowned, looking right through her brown eyes. "You keep your chin up, no matter what."
The princess nodded and kissed both of her hands wrapped around the bars. "I will see you soon."
"Wait. Come closer."
The girl did as she was told and Regina got the strength to support her head and press her lips to Snow's forehead, through the bars. She'd never been this affective with Snow, but she had to do it now. This was going to be the last time she'd see her, and even if she wouldn't tell her, the princess needed to feel loved by her. Regina wished Snow would remember this every time some dark memory of her would get to her mind.
Regina moved away and tried to give the princess the best smile she could manage, knowing she would never see her again, knowing in two days Snow was going to probably wake up to the news she was dead, and she was going to be heartbroken. She wouldn't be there to comfort her, but she knew Johanna would be there. It was going to be okay.
"You can go now."
Snow gave her one more smile before she turned around and walked away from her, looking back every other moment. Regina sighed and stepped back into the darkness; her back resting on the wall. She closed her eyes and imagined Daniel, welcoming her somewhere. She was going to see him again.
Snow had orders to stay in the library room. There were two guards inside the room, two others outside the room. She didn't know why she needed so many guards, but still she followed her father's orders, hoping that doing what he wanted would help to later convince him about freeing Regina.
A lump formed in the princess' throat to remember how much weak her stepmother was last night. Even if she wanted to focus on the book, she couldn't. All she could think of was Regina. She just wanted to help her, get her out of that horrible place. That was no place for a queen.
Her father never loved Regina; that was clear. He'd never think of the possibility of killing her if he loved her. But if she could only get Regina out of there, even if she wasn't queen anymore, she'd be happy with that. She'd be happy as long as Regina was happy.
It was true that Regina wasn't the most friendly woman, but that didn't mean she was dark and evil. She was kind of cold and unkind to peasants and guards, she wasn't the woman that saved her from the horse anymore, but she was still there. Snow knew she was still there every time she made her laugh, every time she'd hug her to comfort her, every time they'd ride together.
The princess took a hand to her forehead, remembering the kiss Regina had given to her. Regina had never kissed her, not once in the four years they lived together under the same roof. She'd always hug her, brush her hair, make her braids, caress her cheeks, give her real smiles, that was all Snow needed, but the kiss was more. She wondered why she did it.
It was like she was saying goodbye.
A suddenly pain in the head made her cry out. She touched the same place where Regina kissed her and closed her eyes, hoping the pain would go away. But when she opened her eyes again, the guards were still in their places.
They weren't standing in front of the door; there were two others guards outside. They were standing in front of the windows, which had its curtains closed. Snow frowned as they didn't even intend to make any move to see how she was.
Why were they so determined to guard the windows?
"Why are you standing in the windows?"
"King's orders."
Snow left her book on the nightstand next to her and stood from her chair. She slowly walked over to a window, and stood in front of the guard, looking up at him. He wasn't moving. "Move."
"I can't. Your father gave us strict orders."
"Why would he give you strict orders of not letting me get near the window?"
It wasn't like she was going to jump off the window; the library room was the highest room of the castle, on the fourth floor, near the palace's top. She wouldn't even register or hear anything from the first floor; she and Regina would always come here to have peace.
Regina. Her hand went up to her forehead, where Regina gave her a kiss. And suddenly she remembered her father's words, saying he'd demand Regina to tell him the cure of her "curse" before… before he killed her.
The princess' eyes went wide as she ran back to the book she was reading without attention. She went through the pages and suddenly stopped in one of them; her eyes going even wider at the image and the title. There was a witch being burned alive between the flames. That was what they did to witches; they burned them alive.
Her breathing started to get heavier as she turned around and looked at the guards. They were standing in front of the windows so she couldn't look down and – and see how her father burned Regina alive. Tears started to fill up her eyes as her body started to tremble, realizing how stupid she was.
Regina knew she was going to be killed this day. She was saying goodbye to her. Was she dead already?
Snow let out a broken sob, and another, and another, until she screamed, and cried out in pain like she was being stabbed through her heart… which she was. All she could scream was longs no, no, no, while imagining her stepmother being burned alive as she was reading a stupid book.
She started to choke on her tears. She couldn't breathe, and she didn't care. She fell back on her back, and kept chocking on her tears, as suddenly the guards appeared on her view. One of them told the other to look for a doctor, as the other helped her sit up.
Snow's green eyes were filled up with so many tears she couldn't see clear, but she saw something shining in the guard's waist. Her breathing started to slow down as she looked around and saw the door opened; she was alone with one guard, the other three ran off to find doctors. Maybe it wasn't too late.
She wasn't going to let them hurt Regina. They weren't going to kill her.
Snow quickly took the guard's sword and hit him in the ribs with her feet; a strength she didn't know she had suddenly possessing her. The guard fell on his back and she ran out of the room, her fingers holding on to the sword that she knew very little how to use; she'd convinced her father a few weeks ago to let her take swords lessons.
She ran down to the third and second floor, no one standing in her way since no one was in the palace. They all were going to witness Regina's execution. The princess got to her room and ran into it, throwing the sword aside and taking her bow and arrows instead. That was something she knew how to use.
When she got out of her room, there were the three guards, ready to take her. Snow felt like the smallest thing ever, but she took an arrow and put it in her bow, ready to release it. She closed her eyes and remembered Regina's words.
"Keep your chin up, no matter what."
Regina kept her chin up as she was lead to her death. Guards taking her from her arms, walking her through all the servants and peasants, as her eyes moved to the royal thrones. Only the King was sitting there; no sign of the princess. Regina sighed in relief that Snow wasn't seeing any of this. She wasn't probably aware of all this.
The guards tied her up to the mast, as she looked down to all the wood that was ready to be lit on fire. "Regina." King Leopold spoke up, rising from his chair. She looked up at him, and felt sick to remember she'd slept with that old man. She wished she could kill him before she died. "Do you have any last words?"
"I do." She was quick to answer. Her brown eyes looked forward as she was met with faces full of anger and fear. "I know I'm being judged for my dark magic. Dark magic that caused pain, dark magic that inflected misery… dark magic that even brought death. When I look back at everything I've done, I want you all to know what I feel. And that is… regret." She looked down and Snow's smiling face flashed through her mind, as well as Daniel, falling on the ground, lifeless. Her mother's hand crushing his heart to ashes as she kissed him, trying to bring him back. She looked up to all the peasants' faces, staring at her. "Regret that I was not able to cause more pain." Gasps were heard from any side as her eyes filled up with tears, but a smirk showed up on her face. "Inflict more misery, and bring about more death. And above all, with every ounce of my being, I regret that I was not able to kill…" She looked right into the King's eyes as her body kept shaking from all the anger and hate she was holding back. "King Leopold."
King Leopold rose from his chair once again, this time with anger showing off his face, "Burn her alive!" He screamed, and Regina watched as a guard lit up a torch and started walking over to her.
She closed her eyes and let the tears run down her face. She knew Snow would find out about what were her last words, but she couldn't help it. They needed to know who she was; she needed to make clear how much she hated the king before she died. The former queen opened her eyes as the guard was getting the torch close to the wood.
It would all end in a minute.
"Stop!" Someone yelled from the people, and an arrow hit right through the guard's arms, making him jump back as his own arm got on fire. Regina narrowed her eyes to see who the hell dared to do that, and saw as her stepdaughter ran through the crowd, pushing anyone that got in her way, till she got to the center of the place. "You're not killing her!" The fourteen year old yelled, putting an arrow back in her bow, and looking straight into her father's eyes. Regina was surprised to see such anger and hate in her green eyes as she put her bow up once again.
What the hell was she thinking? Did she really think she could fight all the guards and her father, the King?
"You're not killing my stepmother. Tell them to let her go."
"Snow White, you are not giving any orders here. She's a witch, and if we don't stop her now, she'll kill us. You didn't hear what she said, she –"
"I did." Snow said, and Regina's eyes got wide as Snow looked at her, anger fading from her eyes to be replaced by disappointment. Her eyes quickly looked back at her father, and narrowed her eyes at him. "She's not evil. She's misunderstood! You can't kill her – you won't kill her."
The princess put her arrow and bow up, in the direction of the king, as everyone gasped, even Regina, to imagine that Snow would hurt her father – for her. "Don't you dare, Snow White."
"You weren't even here when my mother died!" She screamed at him, tears spilling out from her eyes, Regina could see the sadness and anger on her face. "And now you wanna kill my stepmother?! If you want to kill her you're gonna have to go through me."
"Fine." Both Snow and Regina snapped their head to hear him actually say that. He shook his wrist and Snow started to low her bow with confusion, as Regina looked back at Snow, and saw a guard slowly walking towards her. Did the king really mean to hurt his daughter?
"Snow, watch out!" Regina screamed, and Snow tried to put her bow up again and turn around just in time, but the guard already took her behind her back, as two more guards came up to hold her back too.
"Let go of me! Let me go!" Snow started screaming and kicking, but they only kept their firm hold on her. Regina's eyes filled up with tears at the image of her stepdaughter fighting so much to save her; no one ever cared that much for her. Never. "Father, please!"
"Lock her in her room." The king calmly said, as the guard started taking Snow away.
Snow managed to steady herself on two guards' shoulders as they kept taking her away. She watched as her father only had to shake his wrist for a guard to walk over Regina, with a torch already lit up by fire. Snow's green eyes locked with her stepmother's brown eyes for a second before the guard finally put the torch down, into the wood, as the flames started expanding.
"NOOOOOOOO!"
Snow's heartbreaking cry was the last thing Regina heard before she started to feel the heat, before her view of everyone was covered by fire. It still didn't get to her skin, but there was no going back. She closed her eyes and just waited for Daniel to come for her.
Snow couldn't see Regina anymore. The flames around her were getting bigger, and all she could think of was that she had to save Regina. She didn't deserve this. She was only protecting her. Just like she was going to do now.
"Let go of me!" The princess kicked a guard in the face with her foot, making that guard let go of her, as she quickly took another guard's sword and pushed it right through another guard's shoulder. She cut a guard's face and kicked him with her feet in his stomach, so he had to let go of her. When her feet finally got on the floor, she only had to kick the last guard with the sword to be free of him.
"Regina!" The fourteen year old girl screamed as she ran through the crowd, suddenly hearing her father's scream for someone to take her, and she saw out of the corner of her eye guards starting to run up to her, but there was no time.
She couldn't fight them all and then take Regina out of the fire. She stepped back, sword up, seeing how all of her father's guards were encircling her as she felt the heat behind her. The princess looked back and forth between the guards and the fire. She wasn't going to fight them.
She was going to save Regina.
Snow stepped back a little before running straight into the fire. She heard her father crying out her name; she was running straight into suicide, but she was going to make it through. She had to. Snow closed her eyes before she jumped through the fire, feeling her skin burning as she fell next to Regina's feet.
"Regina!" Snow coughed, and stood on her feet with the little strength she had. Regina opened her eyes as they got wide at the sight of her stepdaughter in front of her.
"What the hell are you doing?!"
"Saving you."
With a move of her wrist, she cut off the ropes that were tying Regina up to the mast. The Queen looked her up and down, seeing that her white dress was getting on fire, so she quickly extended her arm. "Take it out!"
Snow didn't know what she was doing, but she took off the wristband Regina had on her right arm. Her stepmother took both of her hands in her own as a purple cloud surrounded them.
There was no more fire. No more heat.
Snow saw green everywhere before her legs couldn't keep her up any longer, and Regina wrapped her arms around her as everything went black.
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