A/N: this has been written for days I just didn't post it.
Reviews guest: "for the love of words" Ok that was funny!
I've looked through both stories in this series and I cN't find if I've sajd what breed Luna is. It's not really plot relevant or anythjng. But have I said what she is? If not, any guesses?
Robin was sitting across from Alice, talking to her. The conversation was pretty much one sided but Robin was trying to make sure Alice was included. She often faded back into wherever she was hiding and could so easily be left out.
"Did you have a good day?" Zelena joined in on the conversation. Alice stared at her for a second. Someone that she saw as an authority wanting to know how she was was still new to her.
"It's okay, Alice." Robin reminded Alice. "She won't hurt you."
Alice nodded a bit warily but relaxed slightly. Archie had listened when she told him what she wanted. An experience that was so foreign to her she still wasn't sure what to do with it.
"Okay, what can I get you?" Red approached the booth.
Alice wasn't scared of her at all but she was still frightened by other people around her. She wouldn't talk if she didn't have to, and greeting Red wasn't neccesary. And the menu had pictures so she didn't have to talk for that either.
"Do you need me to do it?" Robin offered.
Alice shook her head. She could handle this. She glanced at Zelena, was it okay with her?
"You're okay," Zelena encouraged Alice. This was normal and a fiaily regular occurance. Alice needed to know that things she did were okay with Zelena. Archie had explained it as Alice picking who she viewed as an authroity figure and taking what she'd learned from her mother and applying it to whoever she thought had the most power over her. Unfortunatley, the fear she must have had in her childhood had transferred over far more than Alice's understanding of the way Zelena wanted her to behave. There had been no luck in repeatedly telling Alice she didn't have to follow her mother's rules. Zelena had tried. It hadn't worked. She was still terrafied of the consequnces of rules Zelena had done the exact opposite of enforcing.
Alice pointed to what she wanted. A food she knew she liked. She glanced up at Zelena again. Had she done anything wrong? She'd been quiet but she'd gotten a little into Red's space. But Red wasn't Zelena.
"That's good, Alice." Zelena knew that had been hard for her to do. Zelena and Robin ordered their food and Red walked away. "Did you have fun with Archie today?"
Alice nodded again. She liked Archie. He usually stopped when she was done and he'd let her tell him she was done. No one ever let her do that. It was different.
"That's good." Zelena really wasn't sure what to talk about. Alice was sitting, mostly focused on her toy. She was listening but had no real interest in talking at the moment.
Red brought back their food and they ate. It was quiet.
Nothing eventful happened during their dinner. There was the occasional flich when someone made a noise Aice hadn't expected and Luna occasioanlly sniffing in Red's direction because of her werewolf scent throwing even the highly trained dog off. But other than that the trip to the diner went well. Alice did need to expereince leaving the house not always being the most terrafying thing that could happen. Zelena wished she could make things run this smoothly every single time Alice left the house, but she couldn't. She could only show Alice thaat no matter what she wasn't going to hurt her. And hope Alice believed it.
The trip to the diner went well enough. And Alice had spent a good portion of the day sleeping so Zelena decided it was as good a time as any to take Alice to Archie's office and show her at least the building.
"Okay, do you want to go for a walk or want to go back to the house?" Alice wantwd to go for a walk. She'd not spent much time oufsise since moving and she did like walking.
"Walk," Alice muttered mostly to the toy bear in her hand.
"Ok."
They went outside and Zelena had Alice follow her. Robin walked next to Alice and talked to her. They got to Archie's office building.
Zelena didn't take her in there or show her anything she just wanted to see kf there was anything along the route that would cause any issues and there luckily wasn't anything that scared Alice too much. The sidewalk made it a little difficult for Alice to walk at times. She tripped over one or two curbs but was fine otherwise.
"Alright, ready to go home?"
Alice shook her head. She didn't know where home was. It wasj't the tower, was it? Was it the house they'd just left or the one tbey'd left weeks before. I don't know where home is. I don't want to go if it's scary. Alice couldn't figure out which words were correct.
She threw her bear, who Zelena would admit wad incredibly durable, at the sidewalk.
Alice couldn't find anything else to throw and had sat down in the middle of the sidewalk. She darted her eyes around and found something that she didn't really understand. It was a dark brown color and it looked easy to pick uo..he grabbed a handful of mulch and threw that at the ground too.
Zelena wasnXt really sure if she should grt uoset by the mulch or not.
"Not very fun when she throws a tanteum with you, is it?" Emile had stepped out of whatever nearby store she'd come from and commented on Alice's behavior.
Zelena couldn't deal with both situstions at once and Alice needed her attemtion more.
"It's okay, you're okay."
Alice was srill frustrsted and scared and didn't know how to explain what was wrong. Luna laid dosn in Alice's lap which helped some but Alice still didn't know how to explain why she was she was scared of Emile. She was the only person that had behaved the way mother had. She no longer wanted that. But she thought it was the only correct way for her to be treated. Should she anger her? Should she try not to? Which one would Zelena want too? Alice was frustrated and just wanted to go back to her fort. But she wasn't sure where Zelena thought hoke was or who she was supposed to keep from angering. Or how.
"Here," Zelena picked up the toy and offered it to Alice whongrabbed itt and threw it back onto the ground. I want to be be in my fort! Alice couldn't handle saying those words. She couldn't explain.
"Ok. It's okay," Zelena offered her the toy again. Alice obviously was upset by something but Zelena wasn't sure what. "You're alright."
Alice took the toy and held onto it for a few seconds. She threw it again. Mother never gave her that many choices! She didn't know how to handle being allowed to express what she wanted. She didn't know how to express what she wanted. She just wanted to curl up in her fort. But that hadn't veen what Zelena asked. She asked if she wanted to go home. Amd she didn't know where hoke was. She didn't like the portal. She didn't want to go through that again. She really didn't want to go back to the tower. But was the house they'd just moved to home or not?
Alice tried to pull her legs up to her chest but Luna was already in her lap.
"Here's an idea? Stop handing her the toy." Emile offered, umhelpfully.
"Alice, it's okay. I know something is upsetting you. Can we talk about it?" Zelena offered. Alice nodded, bur was still frightened and kept glancing towards Emile.
"Yeah, you've gitta go," robin told emile.
"I'd rsther not hang around a yway. Seriously, control your kid"
Emile walked off before Zelena could say anything.
"Mom, nkt wkrth it."
Zelena thought for a minute. She'd said home and thwn alice was upset.
"Do you know where home is?'"
Alice shook her head.
"Oh. I'm sorry. I should have been more clear," Zelena apologized for her mistake.
Alice nodded just to agree with her. She still didn't understand.
"Wherever you live currently is home, okay?"
It was a potentially oversimplified explanation but Zelena tried not to complicate things if she didn't have to.
"So with that definition, do you want to go home? Or do you want to go somewhere else?"
Hone. I want to be in my fort.
Alice nodded. Please take that as an answer. I don't feel like talking.
"Alright. Let's go home."
They walked back, Alice still occasionally tripping because she had never learned how to walk for long or on a sidewalk that had things that dropped down.