Chapter 10:

AN: Okay…so the original chapter 10 was completely different to this, with Rose Red getting caught in the curse. That idea just threw off my timeline and my plans, so I've gotten rid of that one…Almost a year later. Completely sorry about that, life and disinterest go in the way. Hopefully, some of ya'll didn't loose / will gain interest.

Rose Red was frozen. Not only by the natural chill of her old village, but by the sight before her. Her once almost charming home was in desolation. The small homes and orphanage were crumbled, metal sheets of roofing thrown about and walls completely missing. There was no one in sight, a haunting silence in the air. She could still feel the lingering effects of the magic that took place, a powerful and dark thickness looming around.

The moment she arrived to her old village, in her old realm, the last of the billowing dark purple magic was already dispersing. The cloud of darkness having destroyed and taken everything with its harsh storm.

"Whatever," She muttered, kicking an old toy on the ground, "better off dead in my opinion."

Before she could leave, several cold crys pierced the air. Rose Red scoffed at the interruption, kicking her hands out to blast away what was left of the orphanage. A smirk played on her lips at the sight before her. In similar night gowns, ones she used on her island, several girls cowered together.

"Who are you?" One boldly asked, upon seeing a similar gown.

Rose Red dropped her smirk and narrowed eyes, adopting wide and innocent expressions. She dropped her knees to the cold ground, scraping her knee on a large piece of rubble.

"I-I am Rose Red," She chattered through her teeth, rubbing her arms around her shoulders.

The oldest of the five children stood up, still being younger than Rose Red herself. She looked several years younger, with black hair and black eyes. Rose Red could sense the soul of her, barely concealing a smirk.

"I am Gwen," She spoke in a gruff voice, holding her hand out for the other girl to take.

Rose Red couldn't cover the grimace at the contact, limping her leg to play it off.

"Ow!" She gasped, her magic secretly worsening the wound. "I've hurt my l-leg."

Rose Red pushed herself to the ground, laughing inwardly as Gwen helped her back up. The rest of the children, four girls and a boy, ran to her. They huddled around the girl, not realizing she was slowly poisoning them once they came in contact with her skin.

The girls felt the affect first, standing stiffly, as if the cold and damage wasn't around them. The boy was slower to the affect, but a quick freezing spell kept him away.

"Now tell me," She commanded, "What happened here."

She didn't particularly care, having lost interest in the village almost a decade before. She liked to call it polite curiosity.

"Magical users." One of the girls answered limply. "The lord ruling over the village backed out of a deal."

Rose Red scoffed, assuming as much. The children really did no good to her, at least they would power her island.

She moved her hands, summoning her magic. The faint and recognizable glow moving around her thin fingers. She smirked with a new unfamiliar feeling moving through her body. Maybe the small blast of magic was more helpful than she thought. She threw her hands out with a crazed look in her eyes, dropping one of her newest projects, watching the portal swim around her.

Thea watched fearfully from Rose Reds tree house, a pit growing in her stomach. Three girls were gone, only four of the islanders lived. She wondered if Rose Red disappeared to find more orphans, to fill their island again. She feared for their lives, if that were the case. She couldn't imagine being trapped inside your body, being moved and used like puppets. Thea was lucky to have been spared from the torture. The idea of being stuck deep inside of a shell of her was horrifying. The girl, who Rose Red was once, Anastasia, was truly gone.

"I'm back!" A shrill and cold voice yelled.

She shot her head up, looking at the entrance of Rose Red. An assortment of powder and magic swirled around her, trapping the Lost Boys who entered the island. Four girls of assorted ages and one boy stood behind her, gazing into the trees. As this happened, some boys looked terrified, others emotionless. Pan, on the other hand, smirked and allowed the magic to engulf his body and raise him above Rose Red's head.

All she, Rose Red, felt was power. Pure and unfiltered control. Her face split into a wild smile, her hair splayed out in the magic outpour. Lost Boys dangled in the air, clawing at the magic that tied them. She took this opportunity to get rid of the bodies on the floor; they were starting to bother her. Instantly, they fizzled away, disappearing into the ground of her island. Her fists clenched as they were outstretched around her, her knees bent slightly. She felt angry and stronger than before.

"Why is it that you feel the need to bother me? Come to my island and terrorize it?" She asked with a harsh and calculated tone.

"I'm only returning the long due favor?" Pan replied, smirking with ease.

Her eyes narrowed even more, gritting her teeth in annoyance. "Is this because of your lost boy?"

She let her hands fall to her side, walking and looking at each of their faces. "How is he, by the way? Still looking, well you know."

She made a face, pointing her magic at herself and letting it swirl around her own face briefly. She noticed one of the lost boys flinch. A smirk took place and a plan filled her mind.

Rose Red squeezed her fist, aiming it at the younger lost boy. The magic holding him began to seep upwards, towards his face. She laughed as he tried to escape, pitiful noises leaving his mouth. The magic used this as an opportunity to enter his mouth, streaming out through his nose and glazing his eyes. Her magic poisoned him inside out, coating him in his now brain dead state. She let his body drop to the floor.

She looked over to Pan, ignoring his glare. "Did you know that despite him being, well dead, you can still use him? Think of it as a gift."

She remembered the boy behind her, looking back with disinterest. "Here, you can have two gifts."

She didn't wait for Pan to speak, bored of the event. As she moved to summon them away, Pan stopped her movements with a protest.

"How did you travel the realms? Without your shadow." He asked with an accusation, rather than a question.

Rose Red allowed a sarcastic laugh to fill the clearing. The Lost Boys cringed away from the manic sound, the newcomers behind her blind to it all.

"Look around Pan." She spat his name out, her tone filled with fanatical emotion. "I grow things on this island. Why wouldn't I broaden my opportunities?"

"How," He stated, with a deadly edge to his voice.

"Magic," She whispered dramatically, summoning her magic and vanishing them back to their islands.

"Let's go kids." She announced, walking over the flower mess on the island floor. "Ugh, this is filthy."

Rose Red was taking her time to enjoy her tree home. She was sprawled back onto the leave quilt, tossing her magic around to amuse her. Her little cub, forever small and naïve, chased the magic around the room. She allowed herself a moment of complete and honest emotion, driven by her own flux of feeling. Her blood still boiled when she thought of the events that took place the day before, her annoyance grew stronger. She didn't notice her cub howl and run out of the tree home, nor did she see her puff of magic turn into glowing flames.

She had a plan, one to make falling in love with Peter Pan bearable.