Chapter Thirty-Six: Doctor…Who?
Red watched the unconscious Doctor every second he laid in her bed. The man she once despised had become the one she hoped to recover soon. Both the Doctor and Snow White both sacrificed themselves for Snow's Prince, leading one of them into death. With Snow gone, Red only had one other real friend left and that was the Doctor. Even though he had lied to her about the werewolf abilities she possessed, there was a part of her that still cared about him, especially after all the stories she heard of him helping others across the land from Geppetto and his wooden son Pinocchio to Cinderella. With such heroic deeds, Red even learned to love the Doctor a little.
"He was a fool."
She heard her grandmother stand at the doorway, looking on at the unconscious Doctor disapprovingly. "Both him and that Snow White – falling right into the Queen's trap."
"They knew the risks." Red countered. "It was either do as the Queen wished or let the Prince die. Snow wouldn't have allowed the Prince to die, neither would the Doctor."
"And look where it got them – Snow's dead and the Doctor halfway there himself. That's what love does, girl. It only gets you into trouble or worse."
Red ignored her grandmother's foolish allegation and kept her focus solely on the Doctor. There was soon a knock on the door that almost broke her focus. Widow Lucas went to the door and opened it; rushing right inside was an uncharacteristically overenthusiastic Grumpy. "He did it! The Prince actually did it!" Grumpy cheered, much to the surprise of Red and her grandmother.
Red turned away from the Doctor and asked the dwarf, "What did he do?"
"He brought Snow White back to life!" Grumpy exclaimed. "You both should've seen it! He kissed her and there was this strong gust of wind that blew right through the forest and the rest of the land! It was incredible magic!"
From the description Grumpy had given of the event, Red grew hopeful for the Doctor. She gazed back to his unconscious form and pondered for a minute. Red then leaned in closer to the Doctor's face and shut her eyes. Grumpy and Granny both watched curiously over what Red was doing, and they both were surprised to see her give a kiss right on the Doctor's lips. After the kiss was given, Red drew back and waited for something to happen; at first nothing did, but then the Doctor slowly opened his mouth, letting residual golden energy to escape from it. Watching the energy float and disperse into the air made Red, Granny, and Grumpy wondered if Red's kiss had possibly broken whatever spell the Queen put on the Doctor.
Suddenly, the eyes of the Doctor gradually opened; he blinked and squinted a few times to clear his vision before he finally was able to see the three characters standing near him. He then sat up in the bed and rubbed the back of his head, evidently suffering from a slight headache. Red, Granny, and Grumpy all smiled in relief. "You're going to be fine, Doctor," Red calmly assured him. "We're so thankful to have you back."
The Doctor looked to Red in confusion. "What did you call me?"
Red frowned. "Doctor…that's your name."
Granny and Grumpy's smiles vanished as they observed the Doctor's puzzling reactions to how Red was addressing him. "I…I don't remember ever being called…Doctor." Red's frown grew into a look of fright. "I don't know who I am…or who any of you are."
It was clear to Red, Granny, and Grumpy that whatever the Evil Queen had done to the Doctor had an extreme effect on him mentally. Red saw how scared the Doctor appeared as he looked around his current whereabouts. She reached for his hand and grabbed it tight, bringing his focus back on her. Mustering up whatever confidence she could, Red smiled and told him, "It'll be okay. We'll take care of you."
"You'll take care of me?" He said with a nervous chuckle. "You don't even know my real name."
Red knew there had to be some way of earning the trust of this poor lost soul, so she picked up on a nasty habit the Doctor had – lying. "John…your name is John."
"John." He considered the name and smiled. "I…I like it."
She returned his smile, although there was a trace of uncertainty beyond it. The once-remarkable and brilliant being known as the Doctor had psychologically transformed into a different man, and Red was not certain yet if she would enjoy having "John" around in his place. Regardless, he was still the man that she grew to love and hoped that, with this new persona, she would truly love him.