Ash

Prologue

Hello my darlings! I have been busy and have a wonderful new story for you! I will be releasing one chapter a week every Friday for you. I hope you enjoy and I appreciate you reading. If you can't wait until next Friday for more, I also write for Radish under the same username and you can read additional chapters there. I hope you know how much I love you and how much you mean to me.

All of my love,
~H

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"It's past your bedtime, darling."

"Can I have a story, Mama?"

She smiled down at her son. She loved the little boy more than she thought she could love anyone. He was the perfect fusion of her husband and herself. This little boy was the physical manifestation of a love that never should have been but had still found a way.

"One story," she agreed with that easy smile only this toddler could give her. "Which one do you want to hear?"

"The bad queen!"

"Oh? The fall of the Red Queen?" The toddler grinned and excitedly clapped his tiny hands. Her husband scooped him up and the happy trio made their way to their son's room and settled him into his soft, warm bed. She sat next to him on the bed as her husband tucked him in. She absently ran her fingers through his hair and started. "Once upon a time, long, long ago there lived a very powerful queen. She was chosen by Fate herself to change the world."

"Why did Fate choose her?"

She smiled down at her son as her hand reflexively went to the birthmark behind her left ear. "We don't know why she chooses any of us. All we know is when we bear her mark she has chosen us for one purpose or another. And when she calls, we have no choice but to answer. No matter who or how powerful, all summoned must answer her call. Even kings and queens have no choice but to obey.

"Now, the Red Queen was of the Unseelie Court and the Crown of Roses was placed on her head when she was a baby. She was only ten days old and her parents were poisoned. Many regents fought to control of her and her kingdom until she came of age and could take her birthright.

"But being a child queen is a very dangerous thing to be. Many people wished her harm. Many people tried to hurt her or worse, and many others tried to manipulate and control her. As she came of age she learned not to trust others and be suspicious of all kindness that came her way. She learned how to survive and grew stronger and stronger. In time, she grew to be one of the most powerful queens in all of history. But the more her power grew, the more her paranoia and suspicions she grew too.

"This lead her to not trust anyone but herself. Anything she thought was a challenge or threat, anything she saw as an act of betrayal, she handled swiftly and severely. Those who defied her often lost their heads. Her infamous reputation grew and grew and the surrounding countries began to fear her. When she did invade her neighboring country, the people of the surrounding nations took notice and started to fight back.

"That's when they found out the extent of her magic. Fate had chosen her after all, she was meant to change the world. In all her time she'd spent alone, isolated from everyone else, she'd learned ancient and powerful magic. She created her own frightening spells and curses. Her most terrifying spell let her take the children of her enemies and enslave their minds. They became puppets to do the Red Queen's building. This even meant she could make them fight on her behalf, even if that meant fighting against their own parents. She would make the parents choose to fight their children or let those children be the end of them."

"But that could never happen to me, right Mama?" the toddler asked as he peeked through his fingers.

She kissed her son's forehead and looked into his frightened eyes. "No, my love, I would never let anyone take you from me. So long as I'm alive I will protect you. Mama loves you so much. Now, where was I? Oh yes, the queen had one other spell, the likes of which had never been seen before. It was called the Black Curse. Once the curse was laid upon you, there was no going back. Slowly it would overtake its host until it turned the mind and heart violent, suspicious and paranoid. It could drive the kindest, gentlest of souls into a bloodlust that nothing could slake. She made monsters of men, good men and women, mortals and fae alike.

"That's when the two royal fae courts held the Great Council. The two feuding courts put aside their own squabbles and banded together against this common enemy. The Red Queen threatened to enslave all the rest of the world if she was not stopped. It was the first time the two courts had ever united and if not for the common enemy, their differences would never have been put aside.

"But the Red Queen was cunning. She too made allies. She promised power and riches and glory to those who pledged loyalty to her. The Red Queen would stop at nothing to rule the world. If she won, she would surely have turned the world into her mindless slaves and freedom wouldn't even be a permitted thought."

"That's why we had to fight."

"That's right. That's why we fought. Every country fought to maintain its independence, fought for the value of life itself, and for freedom."

"And what about the Seelie Queen and the knight?" He grinned up his violet eyes shining.

"Yes, baby. The Seelie King fought with his armies to distract the Red Queen and create a diversion, his Queen and the Knave of Hearts trapped the Red Queen. It took the efforts of every single one of the fae, both Seelie and Unseelie and the thoughts and tributes of every single mortal on our side. With the help of a very special mortal they created a lock. And so the Red Queen still is locked in her own kingdom, sealed away for all time."

"And she can't get out, right Mama?"

"Oh my darling, this happened a long, long time ago. You don't need to worry. You're safe. Mama and Papa love you and are here. Now, it's time for bed. Goodnight, my love, sweet dreams." She kissed his forehead one more time

"Goodnight Mama, goodnight Papa." he yawned as he closed little eyes.

She blew out the candle and she and his father made their way back downstairs. "He loves that story." he grinned before he gave his wife a kiss.

"That he does."

"You tell it like you were there. It's one of my favorites too."

She smiled and kissed him on the cheek. "I want to look at the stars. You go up to bed, I'll be up soon."

"Goodnight, my love." He kissed her goodnight before he retreated back upstairs to their bedroom.

She made her way outside. It was a dark, moonless night, but that made the stars shine brighter. She watched the stars for a long moment before she felt the air shift. She knew what that meant. Her heart hammered in her chest. She turned to face the interloper. There stood an ethereal girl with the bluest eyes and blonde curls secured away from her face.

"You knew it would come to this." The girl warned, her cerulean eyes deadly and cold, hatred burning bright.

"Please, just don't hurt him."

"How could you choose that over your own family?"

Tears filled her eyes as she thought of her son. "It was fate."

The dangerous girl shook her head, disgusted. She'd come with a purpose, she would not fail. "Someone's blood will be spilt this night."

"Then let it be mine. Don't hurt my son." She quiet pleaded.

"It didn't have to be this way. You chose this."

"Just don't make him pay for my choices. Neither of them know. I have bound him. They never need to know."

The dangerous girl scoffed and spat at the begging mother's feet. "You deserve so much worse than this, worse than everything that you've become." The girl moved faster than any mortal could. The only sound of the night was the quiet gurgling before the young mother fell to her knees then to her side. "You can blame fate all you want, but it was you and your choices that led to your own destruction." She spat on the dying woman as she bled out alone on the cold, hard ground. "It was you and your damned choices."