Chapter Text
Faybelle cackled as the potion drenched the ballroom, magic smoke engulfing the thronecoming ball.
As it cleared, most of the students took the change in stride, laughing at their change of style. Apple couldn't. She was frozen in place.
The spell had switched everyone's appearances and outfits with the story role most significant destined counterparts, some princesses wore suits, some princes wore damsel dresses, mostly though it was royals decked in villainy and villains as the good royals. Briar was giggling as she hovered - leaning heavily on a now disgruntled and flushed, human, Faybelle - a temporary hot pink pair of wings fluttering behind her, her gown shorter, darker, covered in spiky motifs and silhouettes, and her skin tinged greyish pink.
Apple could not tear her eyes away from Raven. Raven who shrugged off the change, and was so easily dancing with Dexter Charming.
Raven's hair was now pure ebony, free of the magically added streaks she'd had for as long as Apply could remember, her dark waves falling gracefully around her, not unruly blonde curls tamed by potions every morning. Her skin white as snow, no sickly flush or pastiness from avoiding the sun to stay pale. Her lips, without their usual purple hue, were blood red, no need for thick lipstick over pink. Raven's grey eyes were highlighted by the soft makeup and pale colours. The white, dark blue, gold and red sitting perfectly against her skin, hugging her thin waist, not washing out her complexion nor needing exaggerated silhouettes or strict diets to slim her. She blushed as she was spun by a Charming prince, her smile unguarded, not forced for the boy next to her or appearances.
Raven was perfect. Perfect in all the ways Apple couldn't be.
Apple tears her eyes away, roughly rubbing her cheeks, heart almost stopping as she caught a glance of herself in a mirror. Her blonde hair, wild, untamed and curlier than she usually let it lie, streaked with light purple, exactly like Raven's mothers was when she attended Ever After High, suited Apple far more than the usual style. The blue of Apple's eyes stood out more, dark makeup suited her complexion better than the bold colours ever could, especially the darker red lipstick. The dark crown contrasting perfectly with her pale hair, the way her usual one never did. The taller heels give her extra height she usually lacks, usually feeling both small and too big next to her mother.
Her blonde curls, too pale skin and rounder figure suited this, she thinks, a detached horror settling deep in her stomach.
She turns on her heel, running away.
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Apple ends up in her and Raven's room. In front of her mirror of all things, it had recently been replaced with one powered by stronger magic. She stares at herself, eyes tracing the black, dark reds and purples, the dark metal spikes, the harsh lines. It feels as if something has shifted beneath her skin, the words she she says each morning leave her lips on instinct. "Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest in this school?"
As soon as the words are said she doesn't wait for the mirrors response, hitting the power out switch Raven installed.
Apple collapses onto the ground. The cold feeling in her chest morphs into realisation. It is not Snow White who asks a magic mirror who is the fairest. Apple cannot outrun what filled her mind the moment she saw Raven in her gown.
Raven is the destined Snow White, not Apple. Her mind races, trying to figure out how this possibly could have happened, how it could have gone unnoticed for so long. How could the biggest stories in Ever After be switched as infants, or perhaps the magic had decided Apple was not worthy and changed it without a physical switch. She tries to rationalise how she could possibly be wrong, until momentary relief fill her as she realises on legacy day she was shown the Snow White destiny, not Raven.
Except, neither her nor Raven have ever touched the real storybook of legends.
Apple finds herself laughing as it dawns on her. Raven must have sense the wrongness of the story, and the falsehood of the book, hence her refusing to sign a false destiny. Of course! Apple hiccuped out a gasp between her maniac giggles. The destiny system wasn't what was wrong - it was Apple herself who was unworthy to be the next Snow White.
But, trying to force the unwilling princess into the role of a villain, stealing her happy ending in the process, what was more like the actions of the future evil queen?
Apple had unwittingly been following her really destiny this whole time.
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Raven returned to her room, feeling all bubbly and relaxed. But, well, she liked Dexter and all, but he wasn't Apple, and she hadn't wanted to stay much longer after Maddie fell asleep in a giant teacup she'd found somewhere, the Wonderland kids all having swapped outfits, Maddie in Kitty's - ears and all - and Lizzie in an unfamiliar blue outfit, probably this generations Alice was poofed into a queen of hearts gown, where ever he is.
Faybelle's prank probably ruined the ball for Apple slightly. With how she is about destinies and her clothes, having her carefully crafted look yanked out from under her by a mischievous fairy would not go down all that well.
Raven pushed the door open, grinning as she took Apple in. The future Snow White had fallen asleep on Raven's bed, hair more naturally curly than usual, the slight frizz was adorable on her, she looked peaceful, less put together than usual. Raven turned slightly, blushing.
She found herself in front of Apple's mirror. She pressed her fingers to her hair, heart beating in her ears. Raven looked like she could belong next to Apple like this, like they could be each other's princesses, destined for each other, not to fight one another, ripping their lives apart until the chains closed around Raven.
She turned away, cheeks burning, and got ready for bed. Apple surely wouldn't mind Raven taking her bed for the night, as she'd already done the same.
Apple bit the inside of her cheek to be silent. Raven had connected for a moment with her reflection in a way she usually would not. Now she was sleeping on Apple's white and red princess bed. Raven looked like she belonged in Apple's bed, like she should sleep there every night, which could only be because she really was Snow White.
Apple stared at Raven, she looked so peaceful, so perfect. Her chest felt hollow, carved out, even as a plan fell into place. Apple would make sure they fulfilled their destinies, their real destinies. Her Snow White would sleep until woken by her prince, poisoned by Apple, the Evil Queen.
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Apple watched as the younger Rebels flocked to Raven, admiring and adoring. A natural leader whose subjects adore her, Apple ticked off of her mental checklist, gripping the book in her lap tighter. Briar shot a confused glace at the book of dark potions and poisons.
Apple smiled sweetly, feeling as if she herself was leeching poison into everyone around her. Good, she thought, slowly becoming an adequate evil queen. "I thought, if I Raven is going to follow her destiny, then I should know what she's expected to learn. It's the least I could do really." Technically not a lie, Apple congratulated herself.
"…Riight." Briar replied, brows furrowed.
Apple blinked at her friend, "Isn't that Faybelle's shirt? I though the spell reversed this morning."
Briar flushed, before bolting, leaving a very confused Apple in her wake.
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Raven slumped, having failed another potion. As the sludge stung her skin, she let the quiet comfort of her friend, Dexter, distract her.
Apple squinted at the destined pair. Raven had absolutely no aptitude for potions or poisons, a key skill for any evil queen. It was Apple's top subject, always scoring perfect marks.
She let herself stew in the fury at seeing Raven and Dexter so close, it was only right for an evil queen to be jealous of her Snow White. She firmly ignored that the hatred and jealousy was more focused on Dexter than Raven.
As Raven left class - probably to fix the burns from the potion gone wrong - Dexter leapt forward, kissing Raven on the cheek. Neither noticed Apple's test tube shattering in her hand. Apple felt as if she was grinding her heels into the shattered glass, wanting to scream and shove herself between them.
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Apple watches Raven water flowers, gardening is a hobby she managed to persuade headmaster Grim to let her pursue under the guise of cultivating poisons. Apple has been observing her Snow White closely enough to see that it's some of the only gentleness she's allowed to express, thus has become a refuge for Raven.
Apple knows morally she should tell the Headmaster about the mix up, but it wouldn't fit her destiny to give up the element of surprise.
As part of Apple gaining the upper hand she has found herself talking to Raven more and more lately. Stealing quiet, vulnerable moments, coveting her laughter. Apple was becoming quite possessive of her destined other half, which was only natural. Raven was hers to poison after all, and she didn't even know it.
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Daring laughed at something, throwing his arm around Apple's shoulders.
It made sense to her now, the wrongness at his touch, at the idea of their future marriage was because it was not her destiny. She was wrong, just not in the way she'd feared-
She flashed a bright smile at Goldie, slipping back into being the perfect princess she's been expected to maintain the image of since birth, ignoring the prickles of wrongness and discomfort from the contact between her and Daring.
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Apple watched from her perch above. Raven was sat in the forest, surrounded by bunnies and birds, some sat on her, letting their Snow White pet them.
Animals were usually neutral with Apple, she had to cultivate a bond with trained birds for her public appearances. The way they seemed drawn to Raven, especially in moments of stress was just another item ticked off of the list of proof for Apple.
Still, she let herself watch for more than just observation, Raven was especially pretty surrounded by nature, with her hair coming loose around her face, and the magic in her hair fading slightly as evening drew near, softening the shade of her streaks.
Apple wished she could paint, but she wasn't sure even magical illustrations could capture this.
She closes her book, with her Snow White glowing in the late afternoon sun, Apple won't get much more reading done today.
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Apple leaned back in her chair, thoughts swirling. Raven had just fallen asleep on her bed after a long conversation about their childhoods, looking so perfect there it hurt. She grinned.
Raven had confirmed another theory for Apple. Raven had spoken about how she couldn't use magic until she was 6, a couple of years older than the normal evil queens, mere months before her mother was locked in the mirror prison. It was then her streaks came in, which she brightened every morning.
A timeline solidified in Apple's mind. Raven and her were swapped at birth, not difficult as they were born within weeks of each other, Raven being older and a particularly small infant. The evil queen has already shown her willingness to fight destiny, and what could wreck the endings better than switching the players in the most important story in Ever After. Then by age six, when it would become overwhelmingly clear that Raven should have magic by now, and was starting to look a bit too much like Snow White, the evil queen cursed Raven. Which was why Raven's magic so often backfired, it wasn't natural born magic. Then the evil queen, having settled that went on with her plan to destroy Wonderland, only to be thwarted, no one knowing the other plan she had growing in her castle.
As for Apple, she was a loud and argumentative child, her mother had her older than Snow White's usually have their heirs and didn't spend much time with her. It was possible for Evil Queen's to be born without magic, though all that did were given an unusually strong aptitude for poisons.
Apple giggled, her lips brushed the glass vial that hung around her neck. The little apple shaped bottle was filled with dark liquid, a strong poison, the kind that worked exactly as the one from the original story did.
She let herself drop into bed next to Raven, watching with fascination the slow rising and falling of her Snow White's chest. The way her eyelashes fanned her cheeks, the oversized shirt, the way the dark fabric contrasted the pale skin of Raven's thighs.
Soon, Apple promised, soon she would fulfill both their destinies, showing everyone how perfect her Raven is and how flawed she has always been.
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Raven leapt out of bed, stumbling. Her cheeks were burning with how hard she was blushing. Apple had fallen asleep on her, Raven had opened her eyes to see Apple watching her, face pillowed on her chest.
"I-uh-wha-Morning!" Raven managed to choke out, words jumbled. She shot up and dashed away, running to Maddie's room. She could borrow some of her friends' clothes. Raven tried to ignore the sweet giggle that followed her out of the room. Dexter would laugh at her if he was here, and point out how obvious her crush was becoming.
They had gone on one awkward date, before Raven awkwardly admitted that while she liked him, she was half in love with her straight roommate.
He had accepted it like the great guy he was, and now sometimes joined Briar and Faybelle in gossiping and letting her bemoan her unrequited love, slightly smug about his own blossoming romance with Cupid. Briar and Faybelle had successfully sorted their mess of a relationship over the last year, having fallen into bed together the night of the ball, like 10 months ago, and danced around each other for weeks afterwards. They were still hiding it, but they were in a relatively healthy relationship now, especially after they realised Faybelle could wake Briar up from her 'naps' with true loves kiss.
They'd since worked out a treaty changing the sleep required from 100 years to 100 days. It had take months of negotiation, but the 'destinies' were more for playing out stories for peace treaties as a ritual - for most kingdoms at least, Ever After being the notable exception - now than they were a century ago, the last time there was a sleeping beauty.
It was really only Headmaster Grim, and the Snow Whites, who stuck to the letter of the stories now, which Raven had only discovered after Legacy Day. She had found out that for the evil queen role, as long as she didn't try to take more power than she was allotted - like her mother - than she would be imprisoned for several years than allowed to return to her kingdom with her chosen good king when the next snow white was conceived.
Though she still would not sign, she did not wish to fulfill any version of the snow white and evil queen story, even a performance of one. And the search for a replacement evil queen was going quite well so far, plenty of people with less than ideal destinies wanting to escape to one with only a few years penance, not being trapped for the rest of their lives by some magical curse.
If all went well Raven would adopt the Good King destiny, mostly in name, she would not sign that damned book, even if it's found.
Raven fell onto Maddie's somehow floating bed, surrounded by teacups and Wonderland magic, groaning.
She needed to find a way to get less flustered by Apple before the princess noticed something.
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Apple watched Raven lean against Briar, fury bubbling under her skin. Raven had spent the previous night in the Wonderlandians' dorm, and clearly hadn't slept
Her dark hair was loose, streaks faded slightly, blending more into the ebony. She looked tired, and soft, moving from leaning against one friend to another as they ate. She wore Darling's clothes.
The fork in Apple's hand creaked.
The pale blues and silver looked good on her. Which was to be expected, everything looked good on Snow Whites. But Raven should be wearing Apple's, not the garments of some destinyless Charming.
As the group laughed about something Darling Charming leaned across the table and pushed some of Raven's hair behind her ear from where it had fallen across her face. Raven flushed.
In the story there is a nameless knight killed by the Evil Queen a few weeks after Snow White is poisoned. Apple has now decided which Charming will fill this role.
As the group stand Darling loops her arm around Raven's waist as if it were the most natural thing in the whole of Ever after.
Apple's teeth grind, she might be shaking with anger now. Raven is her destiny, and she is Raven's. How dare Darling presume to come between them! To lay her hands on Raven as if there's even a chance that she is the Charming who will be Raven's true love!
Apple knows that true loves kiss is always between a prince and a princess, after all part of what makes Apple the future evil queen is-
So if Darling wants to carved a place in their story, she cant try. But it will only only end in her death.
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Apple relaxed between Briar and Darling.
Only a month until she enacted her plan. Which meant only a month left with her friends.
Apple was going to be the best evil queen. She had to be.
She had complete surprise, preparation time, an army, and a plan.
In her research Apple had noticed that in recent generations the evil queens had been growing lazy in their role. Every time the story happened the Queen's held the kingdom of Ever After for less time, they banished less creatures, used a smaller force of dark creatures, and poisoned their Snow White's for less time.
The current Snow White had only been poisoned for THREE DAYS for destiny's sake!
Raven would sleep until true love's kiss, and if Apple could keep them separated for long enough, that would be at least a year, hopefully several.
Raven deserved nothing less than a true loves who would actually fight for her.
Apple allowed herself to relax into her friends and for a little while she wasn't evil or so flawed destiny rejected her, she was just Apple.
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"I do want my destiny, mother!" Apple protested.
"Then you need to fight a little more for it, my sweet." Snow White's sing songs voice responded
Apple felt like nails were dragging along her skin.
She had always wondered how she could possibly be angry with her mother, no one good ever disliked Snow White's! Knowing she was evil, rotten to the core, made the twisting discomfort when Snow White got like this slightly easier. It made sense she couldn't simply adore her 'mother', as the evil queen she was hard wired to despise her, and being raised by the queen could only offset that so much.
"I have a plan that will have both me AND Raven following our destinies very soon."
Apple would fight and claw her way through her story. And who knows? Perhaps she would be the first Evil Queen to wrench her happy ending from the pages of destiny itself.
At that Apple slammed down her mirror phone.
She didn't have time to listen to another lecture from her 'mother'. After tomorrow night Apple White would be gone, the next Evil Queen would be left in the ashes, and Apple would never owe this Snow White her time again.
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Apple exhaled, hands shaking as she stared at the mirror. The sheen of her potion settled, leaving a purple hue across the glass.
This whole thing was a lot easier after she persuaded all her classmates to swap story roles for the ball again, in anniversary of the last one.
Her hair was streaked with platinum blonde and lavender, curls wild, apart from the braiding. Her dress was deep black, seeming to be made of pure shadow, with the sleeves and torso purple where it caught the light, lace spider-webbed across the fabric, the skirt intersected with panels of deep red. The dark crown headpiece contrasted well with her colouring. The magical pendant pulsed against her throat, it's fiery magic ready for the ordeals ahead, her bracelet were similar to the shackles from Raven's vision in the story book of legends.
"Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the fairest of them all?"
"Raven, my queen."
Her hands trembled as she tucked the poison into her skirts. So the story began.
Once upon a time….
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Apple stared at Raven. Her cheeks burned, eyes wide, breathing unsteady.
Raven looked perfect in the dress Apple chose.
White skirts with deep red and dark blue embellishments, with only hints of gold. A single red ribbon winding through her mostly loose ebony hair. Simple, soft makeup with only gloss highlighting her blood red lips.
Raven looked every inch the Snow White she was supposed to be, everything Apple could never live up to.
Raven nervously waved at Apple, flustered by the many eyes on them. Apple looked spellbinding in the dark gown, the complicated braids just around the crown on her head leading into wild curls framed her face beautifully. In the last year Apple had finally begun eating actual meal, and she looked so much healthier with the added weight. Raven's heart stuttered in her chest, hands sweaty.
Raven had decided that tonight would be the night she confessed. She would confess, almost definitely be rejected, and hopefully be able to move on. Planning did not help ease her nerves though. It did not help that for some reason Dexter and Darling were missing, so she couldn't rely on either to calm her anxiety.
Apple strode forward, feeling oddly confident in shadows, with multiple poisons, potions, magical artifacts and knives on her person.
She held out her hand, "A dance?"
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They danced for over an hour together before stumbling into the gardens.
Raven turned to face Apple, confession on the tip of her tongue, but words fled her.
Apple knelt before her, a sweet smile on her face, and holding out a perfect red apple. "An apple for my Snow White, the fairest in the land?"
Raven blushed to the tips of her ears. As she bit into it, she mulled her next words, ready to tell Apple of her constant love for her.
Raven never got a chance to speak. Collapsing across the bed of wildflowers.
Apple smashed two bottles, one creating a layer of purple smoke over the entire ball, the other pulling people towards their location.
Apple allowed herself to stroke Raven's cheek exactly once before breaking away, cackling loudly - invisible to the crowd gathering - and grip her necklace, letting the flash of teleportation take her. She had a kingdom to take and hostages to terrorise.
When the smoke clears the crowd of students see an image from a fairy tale.
Sleeping on a bed of meadow flowers was a maiden, with hair as dark as ebony, lips as red as blood and skin white as snow. An apple with a single bite missing rolling away from her open palm.