Alice tried to sleep but woke up shortly after she'd fallen asleep. She sat up and looked at her arm. The small object inside of it was the smallest metal. And she hated it. It was connected to something else that winded up into a bag filled with some kind of water. She didn't understand why it was there. She didn't like it. It would make so much noise of she moved. Even if she just tried to shift her weight a little to get a little closer to comfortable.

"Whatdidido?" Alice asked Luna, as quietly as she could. She didn't understand. She'd tried so hard to do what she was supposed to. But it had been so scary. She couldn't hold in how she felt. She mentally scolded herself. [you know better than to scream] The voice in Alice's head was so cruel to her. She pulled her legs up to her chest, ready to hide as much as she could. Luna laid down in her lap. As she moved her arm to pet Luna the pole shifted a bit. Alice flinched.

"Sorry." It'd made a sound. Alice hated this thing. It made it so much harder to stay silent. Alice wanted it away from her. But it was connected to her arm. She hated it. Could she get it off? She was already in a lot of trouble anyway. And Zelena wasn't going beat jer, that'd be too much work. Her mind reminded her that someone else could. But she didn't care she wanted it out of her arm. And the person that had put something similar into her arm had taken it out..could she?

Alice tugged at the IV for a while, the metal shifting in her arm bothering her but not enough that sje registered it as painful. It took some time but she got it out. Alice set it on thr ground. The still mostly filled bag dangling from its pole. The blood on her arm not bothering her. It would wash off or scar over. That's how it worked. She readjusted and fell asleep.

Zelena walked over to check on Alice not too much later. Alice was curled up and the IV wasn't attached to her.

Zelena quickly panicked. Alice was bleeding. "Alice wake up."

The smallest amount of sound stirred her awake. Alice flinched and groggigly apologized.

"Hey, it's okay. I'm not mad. You're bleeding."

Alice knew she was bleeding. It'd stop eventually. And then it'd start all over again eventually. She'd anger someone or she'd trip and hurt herself. She liked Luna's hanress, she could hold onto it when she lost her balance. Something that happened all the time but she'd never even really admitted to herself. She didn't know it was strange.

Alice nodded.

Zelena winced as she looked at Alice's arm. She told her she'd be right back and went to get a bandage.

"I have to stop the bleeding," Zelena told her and talked her through what she was doing. Alice pulled her arms closer to her body. [Please don't.] She knew it had never really worked but shebwas scared. It was just a bandaid but it still reminded Alice of thebrestraints her mother would use to chain her up. Alice had hated those and anything that reminded her of them. That's why she'd wanted the iv gone so badly. Zelena still managed to talk her into letting her bandage her arm.

"I know. That was scary. You did really good."

Good? Alice liked when she was told she'd done something good. That usually meant good things would happen. It wasn't something sje'd experienced in the tower so she only knew hoe it worked with Zelena and robin. Kf thry said she'd done something good, they weren't gling to hurt her in their next movement. They were going to do something that made her feel better. Or at least something she liked. Or tell her how to make berself feel better. It as nesrly always the former.

"Here." Zelena offered Alice a sticker and suggested she stick it on the wall of her corner, which she did.

Zelena walked away. The IV fluids had failed. And Alicebwas going to have to go back to the hospital to try again. Zelena sighed. That was goimg to be a tlugh sell.

Zelena returned later. She'd let Alice try to get some sleep after helping her.

"We have to get someone to put the IV back in," Zelena told her. alice shook her head. She hadn't meant to do whatever it was Zelena was upset with her for.

"Sorrysorrysorry."

Zelena felt awful. Alice deserved to not have to face what was clearly something she was more scared of then most things. She didn't deserve being so used to being told she had ro wait for her most basic needs that she was terrafied to drink enough to really be okay. Zelena had started ro wonder if the fact Alice was pretty dehydrated was making it even harder flr her to understand that she was no longer in a dangerous enviormemt.

"You didn't do snything wrong. It's not a punishment. It's just water. I know it's not fun. But you habe a hard time drinking and the iv can drink for you."

Alice stared at the ground, internally yelling at herself for not doing absolutley everything right.

Zelena felt so guility. She'd forgotten to truly truly explain the IV to alice. Lf bloody course she'd ripped it out. Why wouldn't she have?

"Tell you what, we'll go get the iv put in and then we can go to the diner and get whatever you wqnt toneat, deal?"

Alice blinked. She liked the diner but the iv scared her. She agreed to it and they headed out. Robin was again out of the house for some archery completion or another. She entered them and donated the money from her questionably moral winnings to charity.

They got outside and Alice eyed the car suspiciously. She hadn't minded it too much before because it had only ever taken her places she liked, but now she knew it could go either way and her entire life had shown her that she would always be worse off when there was a chance for something to hurt.

Alice was tired. And her arm hurt. And she'd refused to eat dinner the night before. She didn't hs e it in her to fight the fact the car could take her somewhere scary. She just really hoped her mother wasn't still at the hospital of they went there.

Zelena made sure Alice and luna got in the car and made sure Alice buckled before she drive to the hospital. Alice had known it was coning but was srill upset. [You need to do better.] Alice shook her head, she didn't feel like dealing wkth her mind's scolding words at the moment.

They went into the hopsital ajd explain what they needed done.

Alice sat on a hospital bed. She hated it. She'd not wanted to sit on it but there was no where else to sit in the room they were in and the nurse had told her nlt to sit on the floor brcauae of the germs. She didn't knlw what that meant. A new iv was in her arm and she was staring at it. Hoping that maybe if she stared hard enough the fact it was in her arm would stop blthering her.

Alkce grabbed rhe tube that was attqched to the bag of what Zelena had called salime while explaining it again.

"Keave it alone, please." Zelena asked. Alice stopped what she was dling. Sje hated this thing. And now she was stuck in a bed. And Robin wasn't even around to play with her. Alice sunk down onto the pillows. She wanted this over. She wqnted off this bed. She wanted this thing out of her arm. She wanted the funny taste in her mouth to go away. And all shr'd need to do would be rip the iv out, again. But Zelena said she wasn't allowed to. [So? What's she going to do?. She's already punishing you the worst way. Just take it out.]

Alice grabbed the tube and yanked the iv out again.

"Alice," Zelena's voice maintaijed a fairlt even tone. "I know you don't like it. I know it's not fin. Buty ou habe to keep the iv in until you'e gotten at least a few lf these saline bags in you. Im sorry."

Alice nodddd. She wanted it over! A njrse came in to attach another iv.

"This is your third iv in far fewer days, what's haopening?"

"Goaway. Bad."

"Excuse me?"

"She means she takes them out. And that she doesn't like them."

"I can make the bag a fun color if you like?" Ryan offered.

Alice blinked and nodded. "Ok, if you keep the iv in your saline can be whatever collr ypu want..i like blue the best, what's youe favorite color?"

Alice pointed to Luna, who was sitting on the bed along with her.

"Yellow?"

Alice nodded. "That's a great choice."

Ryan return with a bag of saline that was somehow yellow. Whether it was a mkracle of modern science lt a miracle lf modern magic Zelena would likely never know. But as long as it got Alice hydrated.

It took a little while for Alice to get thrkugh thr first bag but once she had the doctor said she could go home. She still had to kwep the iv in for at thr very least a few more days. But one good thing about living in a magical town is that most medicial procedures needed minimal oversight from medical professionals. Zelena was given instructions to give Alice a bag of saline a day for a few days and to try to slowly introduce her to drinking more liquids on her own. They didn't even habe to be watwr at this poijt. Anything she was willing to drink counted, especially as the iv fluids were still being pumped into her. Their bright colors seemed to quell some of Alice's fesrs.

Zelena had promised so thry headed to the diner. Alice immedaitly wanting to sit in thwir udual booth. Thankfully, it was unoccupied.

Alice sat and lunda laid down nearish to the booth.

"And there's my favorite customers, been a while," Rued greted. "Oj you had to go to the doctor, that's not any fun At least you don't get offered dog treats on your visit."

Alice stared at Ruby. She ubderstold some of what she was saying. It didn't matter what she sakd, she didn't scsre her. She wouldn't hurt her. Dogs didn't hurt people. And that was the most comfodting thing to Alice that had ever existed. She was safe in this one small space. And it made her feel better to know that she had someone she couks trust that could talk to her.

"So, what can Inget you?"

Alice looked at the floor. The iv out of her aem would be nice but she doubted that would work. She glanced up at zelena. Who nodded encojrsgingly. "Slaghetti."

It was mumbled, zelena didn't even hear ir.

"You got it, my wolf hewring defintiely helps. Only I can hesr you whwn youbtalk that quietly." Alice blinked. Only red could hesr her no one else could. Zelena couln't. She was safe. She could tell someone what was wrong. She'd wanted to. Bur was so scared of pain that she didn't try to use her words. She tried draeing pictures for Archie and he got ir sonetines but it took so much effort that she didn't think she'd ever get very far.

"Idon'tliketheiv."

"I like it. It's pretty," Red offered, crouching down next to her. "It matches Luna. That's cool."

"Idon'tlikeit. Itsmetal."

"Yeah, metal's a pain sometimes. What's wring with it?" The werewolf's silver allergy gavw her some kimd of ubderstanding of Alice's distrust for at least rhe needle.

"Idon'tlikemetal."

"Why not?"

"Ithurts."

"Can I see?"

Alice nodded, offering her her arm. Zelena was watching as someone finally fully connected with Alice in a way that she'd never thought was going to happen. She was having an actual conversation. Well probably. She couldn't actually hear Alice talking as quietly as she was.

"Yeah, it looks okay."

"Nothurtnow. Sometimes. Withmother."

"Oh. She's not here, she can't hurt you."

Alice stared at red. That was a lie. Yes she was. And yes she could.

Alice threw her toy at the ground. She'd gotten frustrsted so easily.

"Hey, hey. I'm sorry," red apologized for uosetting jer. "I know. I don't know what this world feels like to you. It's big and it's scary and you were shown only the bad parts so young. But that kv is to hrlp you at least feel better. Think you can tolerate it?"

Alice stared at her. "Deal. It means deal with it."

Alice nodded. "Ok."

"Isshegoingtochainmeupandhurtme?"

"Who?" Red asked.

Alice looked upnfor a second.

"Zelena? Gods no. You're safe. I bet she'd love if you sakd hi to her. She's just been watching us talk. I'm gonna go get your food, okay?" Red returned the sulrinslgly uninjured toy bear.

Alice didn't want red to leave. She was nice. But sje let her go.

Alice kept glancing between her lap and zelena. Safe? No she wasn't. She never would be. But she trusted red. So she'd give ot a try

"Hi." Kt was barely audibke but Zelena didn't react negativley.

"Hi. Good job."

Alice went back to hugging ber toy and playing with it but she'd made an attempt at talking ton Zelena and jt hadn't ended in her being hurt. Red returned eith thr food and the diner was pretty much dead at the moment.

"I can talk more, kf you want." She offered. Alice nodded. She could finally talk to someone. She felt so alone. It was all she was used to but at least in the tower she could talk to whatever she found while cleaning. But she was around people far more often now.

Alice mumbled a bit more at Red and Red responded to it with her own words.

Red walked away when Alice seemed more interested in eating her food than talking.

Zelena and Alice finished eating and Zelena mouthed a thank-you to red. She hadn't seen Alkce even close to that talkative or happy in well really ever. She'd needed that. Badly. Hopefully red kept working at the diner.

"Ok, you did great. do you want to go home or do you want to go get ice cream."

Alice was tired.

"Home."

They headed home and alice crawled into her fort and went to bed.