Cinderella- parents dead (illness), suffered years of abuse at the hands of her own stepfamily; classified as a schizophrenic after strange behavior caused her husband to have her institutionalized.
Eric- Suffered from hallucinations after surviving a shipwreck that killed both his parents; believes he was saved by a mermaid or siren of some sort; has tried multiple times to throw himself back into the sea to "return to her"; Helena believes these delusions and suicide attempts are results of "survivor's guilt".
Megara- Was originally treated as a child for complaints of bad dreams; eventually manifested into full-blown insomnia and night terrors; When she does sleep, she has terrible nightmares of some bogeyman, so realistic she can't tell difference between dreams and reality, causing acute paranoia; the figure that torments her in her sleep must be metaphorical for a past abuser- her father, perhaps?
Adam, Kenai and Naveen all suffer from some form of lycanthropy or delusion; Adam seems to believe he can transform into some kind of monster, is prone to fits of rage that cause him to be quite violent, requires constant sedation; Kenai believes he spent some time trapped in the body of a grizzly bear thanks to the magic of some "Great Spirits"; Naveen thinks he's being stalked by a witch doctor who previously turned him into a frog; Kenai and Naveen aren't truly dangerous (both have been rehabilitated from their pasts of fighting doctors and orderlies), can be allowed out with other patients. Adam must remain locked up at all times.
Tarzan- The "Ape Man", the "missing link"; as a baby, was shipwrecked on the African Coast. His parents didn't survive the harsh conditions of the jungle, leaving him to be raised by the wildlife- namely, gorillas. His real name is unknown, "Tarzan" was all he would say, while gesturing to himself; untrusting and easily startled, violent when aggravated, hardly speaks English. Behaves completely like a wild animal.
Esmeralda and Kidagakash are both accused witches; Esmeralda was saved from being burned at the steak by Quasimodo, who was sent by Helena to bring her here for study. Kidagakash (Let's call her Kida from now on.) is an amnesiac who randomly appeared on an island in Wales, a land rumored to be riddled with magic; She wandered into a small village and upset some villagers with her unnatural behavior and apparent witchcraft (speaking in tongues, healing?). She was brought here by Rourke and Helga.
Vanessa is also accused of witchcraft- by herself. She claims to be possessed by the spirit of an ancient "Sea Witch"; bizarre behavior lead to her family having her locked up. Helena believes Vanessa suffers from multiple personality disorder.
Alice
I have to stop myself from reading my last cluster of haphazard notes. My hands shook so badly when I wrote them that the words are barely legible, yet I can read them perfectly, as they are seared into my brain. The idea of what these words could mean, or of them holding any truth, fills me with absolute dread. Yet they cannot be ignored. As hard as I try to keep my eyes off the sloppy cursive lines, I cannot ignore their call. So I turn and allow my tired eyes to glaze over the words that continually echo in my head:
Jane Porter - suffers from dangerous hallucinations and paranoia; murderer.
I know the words aren't true, yet they haunt me. Helena created this file and stored it away from prying eyes for a reason... Jane's picture isn't in it. It has tomorrow's date on it. This file has been created prematurely in preparation for some farce. I believe Helena is going to frame Jane for a terrible deed, lock her up here and throw away the key. No one will ever question Helena about it. Jane has been acting erratically for weeks - months - now. It would be easy enough for Helena to pass it off as Jane "finally snapping". Jane's father won't even be able to get her out of this place if Helena convinces everyone she's a killer.
Jane is in danger, facing a lifetime in solitary confinement, being abused or neglected and -undoubtedly- eventually being driven to actual clinical insanity. And she has no way of being prepared for it.
I have to warn her. Our next session is tomorrow, just before noon. Jane is a brilliant woman. In spite of our differences in the past, I know she'll hear me and see reason. She has to get out of this place! It's the only way to save her from this fate. Helena can't place the blame for a murder on Jane if she isn't here when it happens. It's bound to occur around lunch time, when everyone's out and about to be dealt this harsh blow. As to whose life will be ended, I have no idea. And I have no way of knowing. All I can think about it saving Jane.
I start to head off to bed, though I know I won't sleep, because keeping my lamp on much longer will attract attention this late at night. Before I can lay down, I have to scribble one last note in my journal - a line I'd forgotten to include earlier:
Who is Rapunzel?