Like a Fairytale

E L E V E N

"W-who are you?" Alice screamed as she saw the black man in her mirror. He wore a red robe with golden elements on it.

His lips moved into a smirk as he stepped closer so that he fulfilled the mirror.

"How rude of me. I'm Rafal."

Alice leaned her head slightly to the side. She'd heard that name before. Her father mentioned it a few times when she was younger.

"So you know me?"

"I've heard your name a few times... But nothing more." She answered and took another step back.

Rafal in the mirror smirked evily.

"What do you want from me?" Alice questioned suspiciously and narrowed her eyebrows.

Rafal acted as if her words were insulting and hurting him.

"Am I as your friend not allowed to give you the answers you deserve?" He asked.

"First: you're not my friend. You're not even an acquaintance of mine and that's how it should stay. Second: even if I would listen to you, you want something in return. What's your prize?"

The man smirked again.

"Quiete daddy's girl, aren't you? But no. This isn't a trade like you know it from your father, Alice Gold. It's just a little... friendship service."

Alice crossed her arms in front of her chest but didn't say anything. She didn't want to admit it but she was curious about what Rafal had to tell her.

"Well... I visited your class while you were knocked out - sorry about that by the way - and saved our little friend Sophie. But our dear Lesso wasn't that happy about it... You should've seen her face. Shocked. Hurt.
She called you the disgrace of school, didn't she?
But do you know what I appreciate about you, my dear? You stand by your values. As a Never, you stand to your feelings.
She can't. And that's what makes her so weak and useless."

Rafal moved closer to the mirror surface.

"She hurt you. She keeps calling you a princess beside you hate that name. You have a bruise on your neck because of her. And you know what? She won't stop hurting you, my dear. At first, she will destroy Sophie and then she'll destroy you. Emotionally, physically and mentally. She-"

"Shut up!" Alice screamed and put her hands over her ears to stop hearing Rafal's words.

"Leave me alone! Leave Sophie alone! And leave Lady Lesso alone!" She shouted as she looked at the mirror.

She could see a mischievous grin on Rafal's lips before he bowed mockingly and disappeared from her mirror.

Tears escaped her eyes as she fell to the ground. She heard Rafal's words repeat in her head over and over again. Her heart started to ache and muffled sobs left her mouth.
She didn't want to take Rafal's words serious. But now she sat here, crying and sobbing.

Alice couldn't clearly say why she was crying. About the words? About the imagination that Lesso would destroy her mentally, emotionally and physically? About the realisation that she might've fallen for her without wanting and noticing?

"Alice. Stop crying. A Stilzkin doesn't cry!" she muttered to herself before she wiped away her tears and tried to calm herself down. And finally, her tears and sobs had stopped - but her heart still felt as if it was broken into uncountable pieces.

A look on her clock told Alice that it was time for dinner.

She quickly changed into a black dress with a black corset with gold laces over it before she made her way to the dining room.

••••·••••

Silently, Alice ate her food. At first, she'd looked out for Sophie and her little friend Agatha but after she couldn't find them, she'd started to eat dinner on her own.

"Excuse me?"

Alice flinched by the voice and looked up. Hester, three girls Alice didn't knew and Hort stood next to her.

"Yes?"

Alice watched how Hester took a deep breath. She could say that the following words were hard to speak out for the black haired girl.

"S-s-.... God it's hard... Sorry for what happend in class earlier. I hope, you're not too injured." Hester said and after she'd finished she relaxed noticeably.

Alice smiled slightly.

"Everything's fine. Do you guys want to sit with me?"

Hester looked to her friends and all of them nodded in agreement - everyone except Hort, who looked at Alice intimidated.

"Me too?" he asked quietly while the girls sat down and now cast a questioning look at Hort.

Alice smiled warmly and nodded.

After all of them had sat down, they continued eating.

During dinner, Alice got to know her classmates and found they weren't as bad as she thought they were. Even the little pirate.

What none of them noticed was the tense look laying on Alice, coming from a certain redhead...

••••·••••

"See you tomorrow, Alice!"

Alice slightly smiled as she watched her new friends leave.

As they were out of her eyesight, Alice stood up and turned to leave as well as she caught the dean of evil looking at her. Both of them locked eyes and for a moment Alice felt as if the world around her would stand still. But then she remembered what happend between her and Lesso and she quickly broke the eye contact.
She felt her heart beating against her chest and how the first tears were returning to her eyes. Please not now. Not here.

Alice turned around and quickly left the room and made her way over the bridge wich connected the two schools. But before she arrived the Never-Castle she felt a hand wrapped around her wrist.

Without turning around Alice knew who held her.

"What do you want, Lady Lesso?" she asked.

The dean let go of her and walked around her so that she stood in front of Alice.

"My office. Tonight."

After a longer break, Lesso added:

"Please."