Chapter Text
Chloe’s eighteenth birthday was not how she pictured it.
Ever since she could remember, her birthday was spent traveling to an unknown location for the day. Sometimes it was to Auradon City, an ancient ruin, or a picnic by some lake yet to be seen. It was a tradition she cherished in her heart.
This year, she was disappointed to hear that they would be hosting a big celebration in the castle.
Normally, she wouldn’t pass the opportunity for a ball, she enjoyed the music and the delicious appetizers that the cooks prepared specially for the parties. But not on her birthday, and not for the reason her parents decided on.
Their story had started in highschool, on a ball, so Chloe was of age to begin her own love story. They made sure to invite every possible suitor from all around the kingdom, hoping she found her true love amongst them. Most of the royal families in Auradon would be in attendance and set to arrive in the following hours.
The intention was noted, but it just felt like an arranged marriage in disguise. What if her true love was someone completely ordinary? Then what? She would never find them, as her parents were set that royals were the answer.
Kind of hypocritical if you asked her.
She had a feeling that no one in attendance would possibly catch her attention.
As the ball came near, her chambers filled with people running around, helping her get ready. It took two hours to get her into her dress and another hour to get her makeup done. Only her maid-in-waiting Sue remained by the end of all the commotion, cleaning after the mass of people that had promptly retired.
She was allowed a moment of respite, that quickly became overshadowed by the pit in her stomach that had made a home in her since the party was announced.
She hated that feeling, and she felt guilty for blaming her parents for it.
Before it was time to go, her mother knocked on her door. Sue opened the door and excused herself, leaving the two royals alone. The queen carried a box that she placed on the bed.
Ella smiled warmly, eyeing her dress with pride, “Oh, sweetie! You look beautiful, there is no doubt you will find your prince tonight,”
She doubted it, Chloe held herself from scoffing.
“I brought you a present,”
Ella pointed at the box and stepped aside as Chloe approached. She removed the lid slowly and gasped.
“Glass shoes?”
The glass shoes were a symbol, the catalyst that started her parents’ story. Chloe had always dreamed of finding that kind of love, someone she could be herself with. As she grew up, the picture perfect changed, she realized she was uninterested in finding a prince. Perhaps the shoes could help her find her love, wherever they might be.
“I requested them made in your style, we couldn’t have you going to a ball without your own pair.”
Chloe smiled, placing the shoes on the ground and stepping into them carefully. They were the perfect fit.
“Thank you, mom, it means a lot,” Chloe gave her a hug.
“You’re welcome. Now,” Ella places a hand on her shoulder and directs her to the door. “Let’s go find your prince.”
Right. She wasn’t so thrilled about that part.
The ballroom was already crowded. Royals danced in the center, prancing their luxurious jewels and sumptuous attires, moving to the rhythm of the live orchestra playing softly in the background. She spotted some of her classmates, stuffing their faces with the appetizers. The King and Queen of Auradon, along with their son and his friends stood to one side, her brother amongst them. She envied him, sometimes. He didn’t live in the castle but he visited often. He was the crown prince yet he had never had their parents’ expectation on his shoulders, not like Chloe had.
“Evening your majesties,” she greeted. Chloe felt intimidated by the King’s presence, something had always been strange about him that Chloe couldn’t place.
“Chloe,” Belle smiled. “Happy birthday, this soirée is lovely.”
“Thank you, I hope you enjoy yourselves.” She hurried away, shaking the awkwardness off.
“The birthday girl!” her brother exclaimed when she came into view.
Chloe smiled and accepted the hug he offered, pushing him away with a quiet yelp when he pulled at her hair.
“Chad, play nice, at least wait until tomorrow.” Audrey, used to their antics, wrapped one arm around her affectionately, “Happy birthday, Chlo Chlo.”
“Thanks Audrey, I’m glad you could make it.”
“We wouldn’t miss it for the world,”
Ella came from behind her, tapping on her shoulder. “Chloe, come here,”
Chloe smiled tightly at the couple before following her mother. Ella guided her around the ballroom, introducing her to every boy and man in attendance, they were paying close attention to every move she made. It was as if the hidden meaning of the ball was a known fact to all.
She failed to understand how her parents stood there with a smile when men old enough to be her father kissed her hand and complimented her. She fought the urge to wipe her hand as soon as they turned away. How could they possibly think one of them was her true love?
On the first opportunity she had, using her brother’s clumsiness as a distraction, she ran to the gardens. There was an occult place where no one bothered her, a stone bench surrounded by trees and flower bushes. This place always brought her comfort when her royal duties became overwhelming. The crickets sang softly, and she took a deep breath.
A noise startled her, pulling her out of her thoughts, a twig snapping close to where she sat. She listened for any sign of movement, and waited.
Suddenly, something sharp pressed against her neck and a hand covered her mouth from behind.
“Hand me all your jewels and you will be spared,” a soft voice threatened in her ear.
She should have ignored her mom’s request of leaving her sword in her chambers. And her dagger. Chloe didn’t move a muscle, pondering her options. She was not scared in the slightest, more like concerned that a thief had snuck into the royal gardens unnoticed.
A smell of roses filled her senses, faint enough to be pleasant, distracting her. She kicked herself mentally. What was she thinking?
Before she made a decision, she was released and a loud laugh echoed through the empty garden. She stood up and turned around with a frown, facing the stranger in confusion.
It was a girl, not much older than her, dressed in full red and black leather, red hair poking out of a hood. She was grabbing her belly as if she heard the most hilarious joke. Chloe crossed her arms, annoyed.
“Are you finished?”
The girl’s laughter gradually died down, her eyes focused on her with a full grin. “I always wanted to do that, though execution is more my mother’s thing. I can assure you, I have no need for jewels,”
“How did you get in here?” Chloe wasn’t in the mood for games.
“The rabbit hole, of course. You have one real close, and opened at that,”
Rabbit hole?
The girl laughed at Chloe’s bewildered face, “Don’t tell me you didn’t know a portal has been sitting in your garden unattended for decades,”
Portal? Wait… It all came to her. The Queen of Hearts, who refused to join Auradon and fought against the army. The battle resulted in Fairy Godmother permanently shutting the rabbit hole, a direct order of King Adam.
Chloe widened her eyes, “You’re from Wonderland?” She forgot the fact that this girl had threatened her life a minute ago. “That is so cool! Entering is prohibited but I’ve always wondered what it was like over there,”
The girl rolled her eyes, twirling a playing card between her fingers, “Ah, we have a cheeky one, rabbits and hares.”
Yeah, not her best joke.
“I heard there is a party going, so why is a princess all alone in the dark?” The girl circled around her, the twirling of the card was making Chloe anxious.
“Just… getting some fresh air,” Chloe rushed the words so she could ask what mattered, “Who are you?”
The girl stopped in her tracks, in front of her. “How rude of me, what would my mother think?” she bowed dramatically, “Princess Red Hearts, rebel, menace and one-girl riot of Wonderland.”
Chloe almost giggled at her introduction, “Princess Chloe Charming, knight in training, definitely not a rebel,”
“Spades, and here I thought we would wreak havoc at the party. I’ve learned some new tricks that I’ve been itching to try, but I don’t think Wonderland would be impressed,”
Chloe smiled in interest, “I would like to see them, though the party is off limits.”
Red pouted. “Fine then, who am I to refuse the princess,” she pulled out a deck of cards out of thin air and began expertly shuffling them, “Let’s see, Chloe Charming. A birthday gift… The party was a bust, so in me you should trust. May you be prepared for a treat that will be gaudy just,”
The movements hypnotized Chloe, drawing her eyes to the soft red glow that they emitted. A card flew into the air and changed before her. She felt a weight on her head, and she reached for whatever had appeared. A blue fedora hat adorned with soft blue feathers.
It was the first taste of magic that Chloe had the chance to witness. She grinned. “This is awesome! You can just make things out of cards?”
“Not quite, they get transported through space-time,”
“So this belongs to someone?” She extended her arm to return the hat to Red.
Red pushed it back, “Keep it, I’m sure Mr. Hatter won’t miss it. He would be jealous that someone flaunts it beautifully, unlike him.”
Chloe was thankful that the night hid her blushing cheeks, “Thanks, but I’m afraid right now it will clash with my dress,”
Red shuffled her cards again, a look of deep concentration, “No problems, aesthetic is important,”
The hood fell over her shoulders and Chloe could finally see her. The moon casted a glow on her red hair cascading along her back. Without the shadow, Red’s face came into full view, and she felt the air in her lungs stutter. Chloe stood powerless, unable to pay attention to anything but the faint red glow around amber eyes.
Another card flew up and dropped right into Red’s hand, a white flower taking its place. It was nothing like she’s seen before, the petals released a low glow in the dark. It resembled a rose, but not quite.
“This might match the theme,”
Chloe held her breath as Red stepped into her space and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, placing the flower delicately. She blinked several times, the smell of roses hitting her hard now that there was nothing stopping it.
“There,” Red stepped back with a smile, as if she hadn’t tilted Chloe's world. “Now you are the first and only princess of this land to wear a Wonderland accessory.”
“I’m truly honored,” Chloe looked at her feet, feeling her cheeks catch on fire. She didn’t mind the burn, as much as she was terrified of the meaning.
She cleared her throat, “Would you like a tour of the gardens?”
“Hex yeah!” Red pushed the deck of cards inside her jacket and grinned at Chloe, “Lead the way, Blue,”
Watching Red in Chloe’s world was an experience worth remembering. She was amazed by every little thing that they came upon. Most people would be weirded out to see a girl introducing herself to the toad that lived in the small pond, but Chloe found it endearing. When they entered Ella’s greenhouse, Red ran from one place to another, talking to the flowers. What surprised her was that it seemed that they responded to Red. Chloe watched with a smile from a bench her mother had.
She supposed it had something to do with Wonderland magic.
Red’s attention was drawn to one flower in particular, a rare specimen that Ella acquired in one of her travels.
“Hello, beauty,” Red’s voice sounded softer. A pause, then, “Perdona, así me entenderás mejor. ¿De dónde eres, linda?”
Chloe blinked, dumbfounded by the easy change of language. She was in awe, discovering new facts about the girl.
“Avalor! Nunca he visitado ese reino pero ha de ser hermoso si sus calles están llenas de bellezas como tú.”
Chloe couldn’t believe how beautiful the language could sound coming from Red, even if she didn’t understand what was being said.
“Gracias, fue un placer conocerte.”
The redhead proceeded with her introductions to the rest of the flora in the greenhouse, returning to English with ease.
“They want me to tell you that the change in fertilizer affected their roots and request to bring the other back,” Red sat next to her and kicked her legs rhythmically.
Chloe nodded, “Noted,”
“They’ve been telling someone named Ella but she doesn’t listen,”
“My mother. We don’t usually talk to flowers, or animals for that matter,”
Red widened her eyes, gaping in disbelief to her right where an Amazon Lily rested, she turned to Chloe, “What!?”
“Must be a Wonderland thing,”
Red seemed to be in shock. And Chloe didn’t blame her, something so mundane as talking to a flower for Chloe was unfamiliar.
“But how do you know their names? Or if they are in need of sunlight or water, or-”
“We don’t,” Chloe interrupted, seeing Red was getting worked up. “We base it on their appearance, or the soil in which they are planted,”
“What a prosaic thing,” Red looked sad at the thought, “I don’t know what to say,”
“Hey,” Chloe placed a hand on her arm, “it is what it is. Here things are different.”
“Tell me about it,” Red muttered.
“Maybe you could help,” Chloe provided. “Is there something we are missing with the flowers?”
Red’s eyes trailed the rows of pots for several minutes, her shoulders relaxing slowly. Chloe observed, she felt something in the air, a warm energy.
“They are happy,” Red noted, “Your mom sings to them, they like it. They don’t care that you don’t know their names, you are kind to them.”
It was a moment of realization for Red, as she nodded, satisfied with what the flowers had told her.
“I guess if it is is, then it is might not be bad if you treat them right.”
The sentence, as confusing as it was, made complete sense. For a while, they sat in silence. Well, Chloe sat in silence as Red chatted animatedly with the flowers around. Eventually they moved on, the next stop in the tour was the lake. It was hidden from view by trees with thick foliage.
Red wasted no time in shaking off her boots and dipping into the lake, glancing behind her expectantly.
“I shouldn’t,” Chloe hesitated. Surely she would get in trouble if something happened to her dress.
“Come on, princess,” Red insisted. “It’s your birthday, live a little,”
If it were anyone else, Chloe would probably dismiss them. Except Red was looking at her with those eyes, they gave her the final push to break the rules for the first time. Red cheered as she removed her shoes and without a second thought dipped into the cold lake. The wet dirt and small stones slithered between her toes, creating a strange sensation that she tried to shake off by wiggling her fingers lightly. A faint giggled escaped her lips, surprising her. How something so simple caused her joy, she had no idea.
She stood beside Red. The moon reflected on the surface of the water, dancing with the breeze, joined by the symphony the night provided. It was peaceful, a rare occurrence in her hectic life. She couldn’t believe this was the first time she was seeing the moon in all its glory, such a beauty she had missed because she followed curfew, and did things by the rule book.
Were all those rules holding her back from truly experiencing life?
She gasped as a small blast of water landed on her face. She turned to Red, noticing the mischievous smile on her face.
“You did not just do that,”
Red actually splashed more water into her, “I did, so what are you going to do about it, princess?”
Chloe accepted the challenge, beginning a battle that had her drenched in a matter of seconds. Chloe couldn’t stop laughing, her giggles echoing for the night to hear. She chased after Red, shoving her playfully and trying not to fall into the water.
They waded to the shore and collapsed on the grass, far from where they had begun their chase, breathing heavily with grins on their faces. A quiet engulfed them like a blanket, keeping the serene ambience around them.
“Tell me about Wonderland.” Chloe said, breaking the silence.
“What do you want to know?” Red sat up, her eyes fixated on her.
Chloe followed, shifting slightly closer, “Whatever you’d like to share.”
Red looked down, deep in thought. “In Wonderland,” she began, “tea parties are sacred, it is an honour to be invited to one especially by the royal family. I help my mom with preparations, and my favourite part is baking with her, though the kitchen is a mess by the end,” Red had a smile as she told Chloe.
“Hatter hosts tea parties for unbirthdays. Those tend to get intense, with people losing some marbles. In my first one, the poor White Rabbit ran away with his fluffy tail blown up by fireworks. I thought that might push him away, but he was there the next day as if nothing happened,”
Chloe chuckled, picturing the scenario in her head.
Red continued, “That’s when I realized they were family, nothing can separate those guys.”
“They seem like nice people,”
“Yeah, the best.” Red smiled at her. “Another time, Maddox accidentally drank a whole vial of pishalver and it took us four hours to find him.” At Chloe’s confusion, Red chuckled, “Pishalver is a potion that shrinks a person,”
“There is not much of that here, King Adam forbade magic when he made the Isle of the Lost. The use of magic or potions is punished with imprisonment.”
“Life without magic sounds boring. Wonderland's mere foundation is magic, and without it, it’d disappear. That is one of the reasons my mom refused to join the united kingdoms of Auradon, he wanted to have full control of our magic. In the wrong hands it can be dangerous and mom didn’t want to take any chances.”
Ah yes. Chloe had read all about the Battle of Roses, as it had been deemed. “King Adam made the Queen of Hearts look like a villain, but I always wondered if he embellished his side of the story.”
Red chuckled, “From our side, the King is considered a selfish dictator.”
Chloe hummed lowly, bracing her legs with her arms, “You wonders might me up to something. He has done many questionable things, his selfishness was the reason he was turned into a beast in the first place. Makes you question what else he has done in secret,” Chloe shook her head, suddenly realizing that her words might be considered traitorous.
Red glanced at her, “Chloe.”
The girl turned to her, their eyes clashing, “He is here right now, don’t tell him I said that,”
Red held up her hand, as one would do in court before taking the oath. “I solemnly swear to never speak those words, or it’s off with my head,”
“Well, perhaps that is a bit extreme, but thank you,”
“Hearts! Let’s talk about brighter things. The floor is yours, princess, I want to hear your stories.”
So Chloe talked, sharing memories in return, under Red’s watchful gaze. The girl hung onto every word she spoke. Chloe felt like she could speak her mind freely, the previous conversation a prime example. With Red, it flowed naturally.
“You know, you are taking a lot of risks coming here,” she told her.
Red shrugged, “I don’t mind being chased if it means I got to meet you,”
Merlin, Chloe’s heart couldn’t take it anymore. They shared a smile, and just as last time, she fell hypnotized by Red’s eyes, erasing her train of thoughts.
In the distance, the clear voice of Chloe’s mother calling her name made the girl jump to her feet in alarm.
“Mom is looking for me, I have to go,”
“Clubs,” Red pouted. “Do you have to?”
“I wish I could stay longer,” Chloe wanted nothing more. “They cannot find you here, I don’t know what they would do to you,”
Red stood, brushing her jacket of grass that stuck to the leather, “Then begrudgingly I may part, but I’ll be back for your unbirthday,”
Chloe didn’t question what that meant, too worried of her approaching mother.
“Farewell, princess Chloe,” Red curtsied theatrically. Then, catching Chloe off guard, she pressed a soft kiss on her cheek.
Before Chloe could say anything, she slipped between two trees, her form vanishing, just as Ella reached her.
“There you are!” Ella narrowed her eyes at her appearance, “What happened to you?”
She couldn’t respond, she was frozen in place feeling the tingling on her skin that Red’s lips left behind.
“Chloe!” The raised voice broke her out of it.
“Where are your shoes?”
Chloe grimaced. She completely forgot she had removed her shoes. She couldn’t point in which direction she had left them.
“I kind of lost them,” Ella opened her mouth, probably to reprimand her, Chloe cut her off, “But they must be around here,”
Ella shook her head with a sigh, “You left your party to swim in the lake?”
Chloe laughed nervously. “I didn’t technically swim,” She knew it was the wrong thing to say when her mother glared at her.
“No matter, I’ll send a search team tomorrow. We must head back, the guests await.”
Chloe didn’t mind going back to the party, meeting Red had improved her mood and she didn’t think anything could change it. She glanced behind her, in between the two trees Red had crossed. She wasn’t there.
“And where on Earth did you get that?”
She came to a halt, reaching for what her mother was pointing at. The wonderlanian flower. The grin that overtook her face couldn’t be stopped even if she wanted to. She grabbed it, inspecting the petals for any damage, surprised that it hadn’t fallen from all the movement.
The flower was intact.