The next day after she'd gone to the bathroom Zelena offered Alice sometjing to drink. Which did not go smoothly at all.
Alice shook her head. She didn't want to drink anything. It was scary. It made her need to use the bathroom more and she only really drank really gross potions. She'd dranknwater before but she'd slwahs hated it. She wasn't sure why exactly.
"I know you don't like it. Can you try?" Zelena asked. Alice stared at the cup. She worried it'd make her feel bad and tired. She didn't feel as tired today. Which didn't make any sense. The same as the fact she'd actually need the bathroom more that morning than dhe normally did. Why was she feeling different. Alice wasn't sure but itbwas probably the iv. Alice had tried to get it out but it'd only caused her more problems, so sje'd modtly given up. And at least the stuff in it looked interesting now.
"It,'s okay," Zelena encoursged.
The door opened and Alice glanced over. Robin.
"Hey, what're you doing?"
Alice shook jer head.
"Want to play a game?" Alice nodded.
"Shoser first, robin. You smell like the woods. How'd it go?"
Alice was listening. She knew she and Robin had talked about where she was gling bur she couldn't remeber what it'd been about.
"Good. I won, like always. Think the animal shelter appreciated that." Robin laughed at her joke that Alice didn't at all understand. Robin walked away.
Alice continued to stare at the cup. [Do I have to?]
Zelena watched as Alice eyed a cup lf water with caution. How did she explain that this wasn't something dangwrous? Why was Alice wary of it?
"It's okay. I promise the water wom't hurt you. The cup won't hurt you. I won't hurt you." Alice nodded. She believed one of those things. Kind of. "I won't let you get hurt. I'm right here. Luna's just ubdernesth your feet. It's okay."
Should she try it? Zelena wondered if showing Alice that whatever she was scared of wasn't as threstening as she thlught it was moght work. At this point she was willing tontry anything to get Alice to trust the cup. She rarely drank water and it'd only happened when she'd clesrly felt forced into it.
Zelena picked the cuo up and drank some from it. "See, it's okay. It isn't dangerous."
Alice blinked. Fine. She'd risk it. She picked the cup up once Zelena had set it down and warily drank from it.
"Good job," Zelena praised Alice for even attenpting to drink. It was all she'd expected her to do. Alice liked when she was told she'd done good and drank a lkttle more. There waan't really a lot lfnwatwr in the cup. Zelena knew that Alice was goinf to be wary of it.
"You did great," zelena gave alice a sticker. Alice liked the weird picture things that Ryan had used to encoursge her so zelena had gotten a few packs of them to hand to her whenever she made the sloghtest effort at sonetbing that clesrly scared her. It seemed a bit strange giving someone a reward for the most basic thing like drinking, but Alice had learned to expect to be punsihed for those same basic things. And it was easier to show her that those things could be good then trying to just unteach her that they were bad.
"Do you want to draw lr do you want to go outside? We habe to go see archie in a lottle while."
"Draw," alice gave ber answer. She was a bit concerned abkut going ojtside. She didnXt want to go back to the doctor and the last few trips outside had lead to that. And if thry were going to the diner, zelena would just say that.
"Okay," Zelena gave Alice her space. The supplies had been left on the table from the last time Alice had drawn. Alice drew what she felt like drawing, getting progressivley more frustrwted by the fact she one of her arms was a bit more limited in its movement than usual. She didn't last long before she felt like she needed to use the bwthroom. Again. This was quivkly starting to bother her. She'd flet like she needed it in the last few hours than she'd needed it most days. And she didn't like asking for it. But that was what Luna was for.
"Lunacanigobathroom?" Luna nodded and Alice walked with her to the bathroom. She did what she needed to, washed her hands. Then sat next to the door and started to mess with it. She liked anytjing that she could move around quietly. It entertained her without her having to do ajything wrong.
Zelena returned to the kitchen from doing a few things around the house to see Alice's drawing abandoned on the table. Her fidt guess was that she'd gotten tired and hidden in her fort. The next guess was correct. Alice was sitting in the bathroom playing with the door.
"Good job. We need to go see Archie now." Alice nodded. She was a bit wary. New places were so scary. But she held onto bear a little tighter and felt a bit better. Zelena noticed that bear had been the most used toy lately. Wherever archie had found it, it might be a good place to look for other kinds of toys.
Getting Alice into the car had quickly become an ordeal all over again. On top of her fear there was now not only a 65 pound dog to contend with but also a pole that had to be stored without tugging on alice's arm. And until Alice would willingly drink on jer own, that had to be involved. Zelena held in a sigh as she helped Alice get in the car. She was just glad alice didn't feel the need to fight her on the sestbelt this time.
Theg goy to archie's office pretty quickly. They peobably could hsve walked but Alice didn't like the noise the iv pole made and the longer she had ro listen to it, the quicker she'd get frustrwted.
"Ok, I know that the noise bothers you but it won't be very long. Just pet luna. Or hug bear. It's okay." They'd barely made it thrlugh a few days with the iv so far, Zelw a wasn't sure how long even she could stand the thing.
They got inside the rolling of the wheels drawing attention to Alice. She hated it. She was used to som staring, she took a dog everywhere she went but this was more than normal.
"Okay, good job. want to come to the counter with me to check in or do ypu want to go sit sonewjere?" Alice nodded.
"Sit." Luna listened desite the command not being for her. Zelena laughed a little.
"Luna thought you were talking to her."
Alice thought it was interesting but didn't quitr understsnd the sound Zelena had made.
"Lunaseat." Luna got up and let Alice use her harness to hold o to while they found somewhere to sit. Luna was oretty good at picking a place close to a wall that Alice could sit in. Sometimes she'd pick her own seat but usually let Luna or Zelena do it for her.
Alice sat down and had Luna lay her head in her lap. She pet her.
Zelena was busy. A kid walked over to Alice. Alice flinched. She didn't like people. She didn't lije strsngers. And kids were a very foreign conceot ro her. All she knew about them is that they tended to be loud. She'd never directly met one. This was new. And she was wsry if new things.
"Goaway." Alice didn't want to deal with this strange new tyoe of human. Not right now.
The kid didn't listen. "Can i pet your dog?"
Alice shook her head. But before she could manage to get the words out the kid was doing it. Alice pointed to Luna's vest that was ubder her hanress. It was still readable. It said not to pet her. It saod why. The kid nlticed.
"Prettry!" The kid screaned causing Alice to flinch. The kid was too close. Alice needed to get on the ground and let Luna lay fully on her lap. But she couldn't. Alice took in a breath and shook a little. Quickly losing her awarness of her surroundings.
" . ." alice let luna get off her lap and pulled her legs up to her tried to help her but the kid was now hanging onto it impossoble.
Zelena walked kver. "Who's kid is this?"
Someone walked over. "Get him kff of the dog."
"He's fine," the parent told her. "Let him play with it. It's a dog. He's petting it propely."
"You're nkt allowed to pet her.," Zelena explained.
The kid let out a blodd curdling scrram. "Mom! She won't let me pet the puppy!" Lr what the toddler equivilant kf thst truly soubded like. Zelena was furious but clearly Alice needed help which was a mkre oressing issue.
"Get your kid, please" zelena demanded. The woman finally did something, grumbling about it the wjoke time. Zelena directed her attention to aloce who was clesrly no longer able to play attentionnto her surroundings. "Hey, hey. I know. I know that's hard. Here." Luna immeadtley went for Alice's lap and stayed there until she calmed down, Alice petting her every so often.
"Oh so she can pet her," the mother of the cjild that had refused to leave them alone sneered as Alice had started to walk to Archie's office. Zelena turned to glare at them.
"Yeah. It's her dog. Thaf's trained to help her. Not entertsin your kid. The dog is trsined to jp jer because she's terrsfied of people. Amongst a lot of other things. And because she can't easily make decisions on her own. And can't easily do things without a bit of help. And the dog does it. But sje can't of ypur kid is all over her. She said not to pet the dog, don't let the kid oet the dog." Zelena was fruious but jad at least managed to hold it in until Alice was out of esrshot of her fury.
Alice held onto Luna's harness a little tighter as she walked into Archies office.
"Hi Alice," archie greeted. Alkce flinched. She was a little tense.
"Nopetsorry."
"I know. I only pet her when you say i's okay. You do the same with pongo. Who by the way, is just waiting for you to pet him. I think he thinks you do it the best."
Alice flinched and sat down and pet luna.
"Did something happen?" Archie asked. Alice nodded. Why didn't people listen? Why did no one listen to wjat she wanted. She'd finally figured out how to decide what she wanted. And it was hard for her to ssy those things. And when she did, she was still met with refusal and the opposite of what she wanted. She'd made it clesr she didn't want to have the iv in her aem, it was in her arm. She'd made ir clesr she didn't want to go to thr doctor agsin, she'd gone agsin. She'd made it clear she wanted no one to oet luna, they did it anyway. She couldn't get whatbshe wanted so why did she try? She didn't get it. Zelena had said she wasn't going to firce her into things, but she had.
"Did someone touch luna?"
Alice nodded. "I'm sorry. You can't control ehat other people do. But you can control what you do. Do you want to test out some toys? Todsy's just ahout explorong my offoce. Talk if you want to. You don't habe to. You can just be. Just pkay. Go wherever you want to in this room. I tried to make sure iput away all the toys that can make soubds but therr might be a few I missed. But nothing's dangeorus. And you won't get in any trouble if you make noise."
Alice liked how clesrly Archie told her what he expected. He always made things feel simple. Easy. Like dhe cojldn't fail at following his rules. Most of the time. Alice went for the things that were cllsest to her first. She mostly moved her hands around things trying tonguess how thry worked. Honestly, the tqctile inpt was entertaining in ktsekf to her. Alice picked uo a box that had a lot ofndetails on it. Archie was wathing her. "That might be one that makes sound," he warned her. Alice nodded and set it down. She didn,xt like noise. She pickrd up something else and pusjed a button. It lot up the way david''s car had. It did it for a few minjtes then stopped. Alice stared at it rhen hit it again. And reoeated that iber and kver and ober agin.
"You can keep that," archie told her. She really seemed to like it. She thanked him and kept playong with various things. She liked the things that ha bright colors or loghrs the most. She reached for thr one thst made noise again. She was curious. She looked at archie. "It won't hurt you. I won't hurt you. It might make a sudden mkvement though." She grsbbed the handke and mobed it. Flinching when jtbstsrted to hum music. She kept going. "It's going to pop open kf you keep going." Alice kept pushing the handle, her curiosity getting the better of her. It jumled out. Alice threw the toy away from her. Unfrotunatlry hitting archie in the side of the head. Drawingg blood.
Alice shook her head. She'd hurt him. It waan't supposed to happen that way.
" . ." alice felt bad. She understood that shebwasn't supposed to hurt other people . Even if she didn't understand that she counted as a person that deserved the same treatment from everyone ekse that she knew she should give to them.
"It's okay. Accidents happen. The toy scared you. It's okay. Trust me, i've had worse," Archie comfortrd. Hr had indeed had worse injuries both in the fairytale world and in the workd where he was a chikd's psychologust. Children weren't the grestest qt handling their emotions and maby of his patients had violent outburst. Archie stood up. "I'm just getting sonething to stop thr bleeding. You're fine. You can keep playing." Archie found a bandaid and put it on thebfresh wound.
Alice kept apologizing. Mother would have been angry. So so angry. "It"s okay. I understand thst yiu were scared. You didn't mesn to hirr me did you?"
Alice shook her head.
"Don't worry about it. We're playing with toys. Thst's matters roght now. Also apparently pongo wants you to pet him. Go ahead." Pongo had left his bed to come over and beg Alice for her attention. Which she happily gave him.
Alice tried a few of the other toys out and archie let her keep the omes she clesrly enjoyed the most. All of them lit up amd none lf any sound.
Archie walked alice out.
Zelena saw his head and asked about it.
"Someone finay stood up to a jack im the box and I got csught in the crossfire. But other than that, Aloce dkd great. The bagd got toys in it. Nothing noisy. A bit nore sturdy than the stuffed bear, archie turned hisbattention back to Alice. "See yiu in a few days?"
Alice nodded. "Grest. See you later." They left and headeded for the diner. Zelena wasn't entirely certain if that was the best idea or not but she was too tired to cook and she had no actual idea on how sje could possobly enforce any blundsires for Alice. It was a cknstant battle tonget her to walk across a room without panicking. To get her to stay in the same room as Zelena without wanting to curl up in the nesrest availabke corner and cry. It was hard to give boundaries to someone that had lived with more than enough of them. And Zelena had no jdea how to apply consequences. Anything she coukd do to Alice either wasn't a punishment or reminded her so deeply of something trsumatic thst it wasn't just a mild consequence, it was torture. And Zelena knew, from the bjts and poeces everyone had manges to put together that Alice had been tortuded her entire life. It wasn't right to make her go through those things again.
Alice glanced upnat zelena and apoligized again.
"I know. Just...dom't do it agsin. Try not to do it again," alice nodded. She felt bad. And Zekena sounded...weird about it. Alice moved on and colored for a bit while theybwaited for their food.