"I'm sorry, your majesties, I fear I cannot reverse it this, 'Princess' Ivy is simply too powerful, her curse it's an ancient magic forged by despicable witches of old, nigh unbreakable except by the castor" the mage bowed respectfully, "I shall take my leave"
The words burned Shaggy's ears, able to hear them crystal clear despite the pillow he'd pressed over his head, "NOOOOOOOOOOO"
His claws made a clean swipe through the pillow, feathers billowing into the air. He'd never felt such rage. It burned through him consuming every inch of his body as he smashed his desk to pieces, ripped the doors from his wardrobe, tore the curtains from around his bed, shredding the fabric followed by his bedding and then his clothes. Until everything in his room was destroyed.
"R-Raggy?" Scooby tentatively poked his head out from under the bed.
Hearing the voice of his best friend brought Shaggy back.
"Scoob," Shaggy sank to the floor, glancing at the shattered mirror.
In the mirror, Scooby sat beside a monstrous werewolf with razor-sharp claws and even worse teeth. A beast so large and fearsome that anyone who came to the door couldn't bare to look at him, let alone hear him speak, his voice a permanent distorted growl.
Three months ago he'd been normal. Three months ago he'd been a human prince. Loving and generous, liked by all he met. Until the despicable witch in muted grays arrived. Shaggy howled with agony, the sound cracking the window.
"Don't worry honey," his mother had consoled, "We'll break this curse ourselves, I refuse to hand you over to that imposer princess"
At the time he had believed his mother. At the time, he's been filled with hope. But, his last chance had just walked out the castle door. He was going to be a werewolf forever.
As the weeks wore on Shaggy withdrew from everything and everyone around him until all he could feel was despair-fueled rage. Prone to outbursts, destruction followed in his wake, and he could do nothing to stop it. Every night when he fell asleep she was there, taunting, bribing, laughing.
"Just be mine, Prince Shaggy, and the Curse will nothing but a bad memory."
"Never!" he would snarl.
He'd wake with a howl every time.
...
Miles away in a mountaintop castle a princess began every morning with tears. Princess Christina tried her best to wipe the tears away, shakily sitting up, pulling her bed curtains open with a wave of her hand allowing the sunshine to fall across her.
"Christina?" Jade, the alpha of her three wolves lifted her head, blinking sleepily, "Nightmares again?"
"Yes, I don't want to talk about it"
Christina stood from the bed, dressing quickly in a long-sleeved black gown. Three years. Three miserable years.
"NOOOOOOOO"
Her own screams still echoed in her ears, even as she ran the brush through her hair. Once every tangle was out of her long hair she secured the only bit of color she wore. A delicate tiara set with amethysts and diamonds.
I miss you
,,,,,,,,,
"Shaggy, may I come in?" Stacy didn't wait for an answer entering her son's room with a weak smile, hoping she looked composed.
"What?" Shaggy was curled on the floor surrounded by the remains of his newest pillow.
"you've been accepted into Moral Academy, the term starts next week"
"The last ditch private school, Like, I'm not going anywhere"
"You are, this school is one of the best and will help you whether you want help or not!" Stacy declared, "So get yourself ready, Son"
"MOTHER!"
"Don't 'mother' me Norville! You're going that's final!"
Shaggy scraped his claws across the floor in frustration when his mother left, slamming the doors behind her. He couldn't be seen like this! Couldn't leave the castle like this. Monsters were well known, and respected with kingdoms and communities of their own but him? In Shaggy's mind, he was beyond a monster. Beyond respect. Beyond help even. What was the point? Going to this private school that had a reputation for low-rung royals and 'troubled' kids. Some said the academy was on par with Ever After High or Monster High. That was debatable. What did that make him? A burden?
"I hate this, Scoob"
...
Christina wandered the castle halls, her mind a million miles away. She hadn't been able to shake the nightmares away yet. They still clung to her mind, weaseling their way to the forefront of her thoughts, pulling her to rock bottom all over again. Jade on her right and Thunder on her left while Fluffy trailed behind. All three wolves shared the same worried expression. Christina hadn't slept well or even smiled in years.
"Christina, dear will you come here please?"
"Yes, Grandmother,"
The hybrid hurried to the sunroom where she found her grandmother pouring tea for a kind-faced man.
"Christina, this is Headmaster Aesop he runs Morale Academy"
The tall olive-skinned man stood to greet her, "Ah, so this is your beautiful granddaughter, pleasure to meet you Princess Christina,"
"Likewise," but she couldn't even fake a smile.
"Join us, Dear" Maleficent smiled.
Christina quietly settled into the only empty chair watching her grandmother curiously.
"I think," Maleficent slowly began, "It would be best if you went to an actual school this year, get out of the castle and spend some time with your peers"
"But..Grandmother..."
"I know it still hurts but you can't hide forever"
Christina fell quiet, choosing to focus on her teacup. Trying to keep from shaking with nerves.
"I ca assure you, Princess, the Academy is a safe place, only those invited can pass through our gates," Aesop smiled, "I've heard you enjoy gardening, You know, there's an old greenhouse on the grounds perhaps you would bring it back to life?"
Her eyes remained on the teacup, lazily swirling the liquid in slow circles with her teaspoon.
"And you'll of course have a private suite, no roommates to worry about, there's also a dragon hatchery-"
"Dragons?"
"Yes, we take in orphaned eggs and care for them when they're old enough they get released to the wild or if they're too tame they move to the stables, they're our unofficial mascots you could say"
"Christina loves dragons," Maleficent laid her hand over Christina's trembling one, "All animals, really"
"Is that right?"
"Yes, sir, I have wolves that I raised from pups," Christina nodded over her shoulder to where the trio sat patiently, "They follow me everywhere, my guardians"
"They're more than welcome to accompany you if it would make you more comfortable, I think you'll find many students have animal companions"
"Will you give it a try, Dear?"
"Okay"
...
"I like, can't believe they're making me do this!" Shaggy restlessly paced his new room.
He'd had another outburst upon arrival, scaring the teachers that saw his parents herd him into his suite. His parents had ordered him an entirely new wardrobe and custom-built furniture that wouldn't break or even scratch no matter what he did to it. The sight of it made him even angrier. He shouldn't have to have new things, especially enchanted unbreakable things no less but he had destroyed everything else such was his rage. Why shouldn't he be angry? Being forced into this mess. It didn't matter that the school was surrounded by the enchanted forest, the trees so thick that no one outside of school would see him. It didn't matter that the class size was smaller. It didn't matter. None of it did.
"It's for the best, son," his father had attempted to apse earlier.
"You'll like it here, Norville," his mother had added.
"I don't want to be here!"
But, here he was in a suite facing the front lawn with ginormous windows where if the curtains had been open everyone and their mother would be able to see him.
"It's rokay, Raggy," Scooby assured calmly, "Want a Rooby Rack?" the Dane offered the last of their favorite treat, grabbing Shaggy's attention before he could spiral again.
"Thanks, Buddy," Shaggy dropped onto the floor, trying to stamp out the red-hot rage coursing through his body.
"Ro problem," Scooby laid in his lap to catch crumbs, "Ri love Rou"
"I love you too"
...
Rather than popping in or flying there, Maleficent decided they would take a carriage to the school if only for the sake of easing Christina into her new surroundings. Not a word had been said between the two. Not that that was anything new. Christina hardly talked, much too consumed by memories she couldn't let go of and thoughts that smothered her. Maleficent had tried everything, counseling, magic, but none of it worked to pull Christina from behind her walls.
"Grandmother?"
"Yes, Dear?" Maleficent perked up.
"What's in the box?"
"Ah, you've noticed it," Maleficent lifted the box wrapped with purple ribbon and passed it to Christina, "It's your birthday gift, open it"
"NOOOOOO!"
"And now for you, little princess-"
With trembling hands, Christina undid the ribbon and pulled the lid from the box. Inside rested two books, alike in size with similar designs. The first she recognized her grandmother's spell book. The second was a purple leather-bound book with blank pages.
"Only you can open them," Maleficent softly explained.
"Thank you"
An hour later the school came into view. The heavy wooden gates swung open allowing them to pull up to the white stone mansion where the school staff stood outside to welcome students and their families—a mix of cheerfully dressed humans and monsters.
"Grandmother..." Christina warily began.
"One step at a time, my little love-bat, take a deep breath and you'll be fine"
"I'm scared"
"It's okay to be scared"
Gulping, Christina followed her grandmother from the carriage, eyes glued to the ground reassured by the soft footfalls of the wolves behind her.
"Welcome, Queen Maleficent, Princess Christina, I hope the journey wasn't tiring?"
"Not at all," Maleficent smiled.
Christina buried her trembling hands in her wolves fur and nodded, eyes still glued to the ground.
"Excellent, please come inside"
...
"Someone's out there," Shaggy grumbled, covering his ears. The steps were so loud!
"Rets Reak," Scooby tugged the curtain open a little.
"No, Scoob, they like, could see me"
"you're not scary"
"To you"
...
White and gold marble flooring reflected the sunlight pouring through the large windows in the foyer. Before them was a large sweeping staircase above which a large painting hung And The Moral of the Story Is... painted in looping letters above a beautiful meadow where animals frolicked. A complete change from the severe self-portraits of Milton Grimm that dominated the halls of Ever After High. The teachers left for their various offices while the headmaster directed Christina to her new dorm, the farthest-most dorm in the east wing.
"You'll have a wonderful view of the sunrise every day," Aesop declared, opening the doors with a smile.
"It's purple," Christina looked around the dorm with surprise.
"We try to make sure the dorms are personalized for every student, come let me show you around"
All of the classrooms had the same set-up, the library was cavernous as was the dining hall and gymnasium. The back lawns were immaculately landscaped, with smooth stone paths and pretty flower beds a small stream cutting through the center. Beyond the stream was the greenhouse that had seen better days. A few feet away from it was a large brick building.
"That's the dragon hatchery, the stables are the building behind it, would you like to see inside?"
"May I?" Christina asked eagerly.
"Of course,"
The inside of the hatchery was kept warm by a steady fire in the center of the room. Eggs of all sizes and colors rested in tiered nests. A row of small stalls lined the back wall where new hatchlings tumbled and played, each trough filled with rich greens and crystal clear water.
"Those young ones are almost ready for the forest, we're going to release them next week"
Christina was only half listening, her attention grabbed by the only black egg in the space, "That's a dark dragon egg"
"Yes, the only surviving egg from the clutch, he's almost ready to hatch"
"The baby's not going to the forest is he?"
"No, people are so scared of dark dragons it would be unsafe"
"Poor thing"
"Perhaps you would like to take care of him? We can say it's your extracurricular and you can take over the greenhouse?"
"Would you like that, Christina?" Maleficent nudged her granddaughter hopefully.
"I would," Christina agreed quietly.
"Well that settles that"
...
Shaggy yelped startled at the sudden tugging in his chest. Was he dying? It certainly felt that way. Clutching his chest, Shaggy fell face-first into his bed. Oh, he was going to die a monster! This couldn't happen. Not to him. Not here. Not now!
"Raggy?" Scooby asked in concern.
"Ugh"
Something was to blame Shaggy realized. And, it was in the hall. He just knew it was in the hall. He had half a mind to confront whoever it was and stalked angrily to the door to do just that but fear got the best of him at the last moment so instead of ripping the door open he eased it open just enough to spy without being seen. The headmaster was animatedly talking to the group he was leading. Behind him followed the queen of the dark fae and behind her the reclusive princess Christina whose name Shaggy only knew from whispered conversations he'd overheard from returning travelers.
She's to blame, he thought shutting the door with another snarl.
He wasn't sure how he knew it was Christina he just did. Awful dark fae. Horrible dark fae.
Weren't they all?
...
Shaggy awoke in the dead of night with a start. That was odd considering Ivy used his dreams to torment him and never let him wake until the sun was well into the sky. Sitting up, Shaggy punched the wall so hard it cracked. Ir was just trading one prison for another.
Scooby was stretched out beside the bed, asleep still, snoring.
"Scoob?"
Scooby twisted, scratching at his ear but not waking and despite his loneliness, Shaggy wouldn't dare wake him.
But why had he woken up?
...
Christina hit the floor with a yelp before bursting into tears. Her fall woke Fluffy, the blue-eyed tan and sliver wolf untangling her from her blankets before trying to lick her tears away. Words were no comfort to Christina, not in this state so Fluffy climbed into her lap and let the hybrid hold on for dear life even when it seemed she was trying to squeeze the air from her lungs. By the time Christina had fallen back into a fitful sleep Fluffy's fur was thoroughly soaked and the other two wolves were wide awake. Dog piling on top of them.
Sadly this was all too normal.
Christina woke again at first light with a shuddering groan, twisting her way out of the pile to stagger into the bathroom, all but throwing herself into the bath, desperate to wash away the tears, wrestling her memories away. It was the first day of school. She had to be strong, she had to be present and she couldn't break. Remaining in the water until it cooled and the bubbles were nothing more than a thin film she didn't feel any better but pressed on getting ready. Drying quickly she selected another plain long-sleeved black dress, pointedly ignoring the purple gowns the servants had snuck into her trunks.
"You look nice in purple," Jade ventured, "It is the first-"
"No, Jade, no color, there's no point anymore," Christina gently interrupted, blinking back the tears that threatened to spill.
By the time, the breakfast bell rang, Christina was as ready for the day as she was going to be. Her tiara secured and wolves on either side she opened the door.
...
"C'mon Raggy," Scooby was yanking him toward the door, "Breakfast time"
"No, Scooby," Shaggy tried to resist without hurting his best friend, "I like, don't want to go out there"
"Rut you rave too," Scooby logically responded kicking open the door with one of his hind legs.
With monumental effort, Scooby dragged Shaggy into the flow of students who instantly scattered around them, made nervous by the fierce-looking werewolf. Scooby all but dragged him to the dining hall where yet again, he encountered that forceful tugging in his chest. Looking around he spied Christina in the farthest shadowed corner of the room. She looked innocent, dare he say sad, nibbling on a pastry but he knew from experience that looks could be deceiving. What was she doing to him? Why? Did she think it was funny? The thought made his blood boil but Scooby shoved a bowl of porridge into his hands before he could be sucked into another fit of rage.
Shaggy sat in the first seat he could find, bristling at the strange looks others gave him. He could hear their whispered conversations as if they were yelling.
"He's cursed you know"
"I heard he frightened the teachers"
"Did you hear the howling last night?"
"I didn't know werewolves could look like that"
"Ron't listen to rhem, Raggy," Scooby declared, "Rust eat"
But, it was so hard not to listen, especially when he could hear everyone so plainly. He tried to focus, tried to swallow the warm, gooey porridge but the comments only seemed to grow louder, the yanking in his chest, harder and rougher, a snarl escaped him, eyes pinned to Christina who was now pushing the half-eaten pastry around on her plate.
...
Someone was watching her. But, why? Nervously, she turned her head, hands shaking under the table as she locked eyes with the werewolf a few tables away. If looks could kill she would have been six feet under.
"Are you okay, Christina?" Thunder popped out from under the table, "Do you want me to bite him?" he asked when he saw who Christina was looking at, "I'd be happy to bite him"
"No, Thunder, down boy"
"But-"
"Down"
"Yes, Christina," Thunder slunk back under the table with his tail between his legs.
"Finish eating, Christina," Jade popped up, "Please"
"I'm not very hungry"
"Please?"
Tentatively, Christina managed two more bites before pushing her plate away, "No more, it's time we were headed for class anyway"
Her class schedule was set up to alternate, slandered fairy tale classes Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Slandered monster classes Tuesday, and Thursday. It seemed the angry werewolf shared the same classes, every time he saw her he glared as if hoping she would combust. She tried to ignore him, tried to pretend he wasn't there. The attention was suffocating so Christina was glad when the final bell chimed and she could escape outdoors to inspect the greenhouse. As she thought, it was completely abandoned, in minor disrepair with not a plant in sight. With a quick snap of her fingers, she traded her nice school dress for a simple cotton one with short sleeves, her swept up into a bun behind her tiara.
Let's see, where do I start?
Wherever she started it would do good to get some dirt under her nails again.
...
Shaggy was so worked up by the end of the school day that he was fit to explode so Scooby herded him outside thinking a walk would do them both some good. Astoundingly the back lawns were void of other students as most had flocked to various clubs, anxious to get a jump on their extracurriculars.
"I hate it here," Shaggy growled watching Scooby leap ahead to chase butterflies.
"It isn't ro rad," Scooby replied.
At least one of us is happy, Shaggy stomped off the path contemplating whether he could climb the stone wall when he felt that awful yanking, taunt in his chest. Head whipping around he spied Christina in the greenhouse.
That was it!
...
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO ME!"
Christina jumped, dropping the pot she'd been holding, it shattered at her feet but she barely noticed. Much more concerned with the very large, very angry werewolf stalking her.
"I-I-i-I d-d-d-don't-don't u-u-understand-"
"Don't lie to me!"
"I-I-I'm not-" Christina slid to the ground, shaking like a leaf, "Pl-pl-please d-d-don't h-h-hurt m-me,"
"And now for you, little princess"
"RAGGY, STOP IT!"
"LEAVE HER ALONE!"
"Jade! Don't!"
But, the alpha wolf didn't listen jumping on the back of the attacker while snapping ferociously only to be slammed to the floor. Undaunted she rose to her feet once more, joined by her siblings. One by one they took mighty blows, Christina shrunk in place, locked in a horrible flashback and unable to think. The brown and black-spotted Dane finally got through to the werewolf, seizing him by the arm he attempted to haul him away but the werewolf was still growling for answers, demanding to know why. It wasn't until the headmaster and the three strongest teachers arrived did anyone manage to force him out of the greenhouse away from the petrified hybrid and her wounded babies who she barely managed to transport to the dorm let alone mend. After this was done did she fall to the floor, bursting into tears as she reached for the parents who were no longer there.
...
Meanwhile, the headmaster sat heavily at his desk. Loathe to admit he was unprepared for a student such as Shaggy. But, something needed to be done so drawing a thick piece of parchment from the topmost drawer he began to write.
Dearest Headmistress Bloodgood...