Chapter Text
It was a sunny day in Ever After - at least, for everywhere except Queen Castle.
The Castle was situated on top of a bleak, craggy rock, the slate grey stones blending into the surroundings. Poison ivy grew from cracks between the bricks, and the air was filled with the squarks of vultures. Above, clouds were gathering, teetering just on the edge of rain, like they were too scared to start pouring down onto this menacing building. This was the effect of the Castle; it emanated evil, practically radiated it, sending an ominous energy to any mortal that got close.
Inside the Castle, in the top floor window of the left wing, stood a girl who was anything but evil. Her name was Raven Queen, and she was talking with her mother.
“Oh, darling, I just know you’ll have so much fun there,” her mother was saying, her voice sweet and melodious. “Ever After High was a formative experience for me, and I’m sure that it will do the same for you!”
Raven shifted uncomfortably, tucking a lock of her ebony-black purple-streaked hair behind her ear. “That’s great, mum,” she said quietly, hoping to end this conversation quickly. “You know, I really should be packing now, the portal opens in fifteen minutes-”
“Oh, Oogle can pack that for you-”
“Oogle hasn’t worked here in over five years.”
Her mother paused, her mouth open slightly. Raven and her mother looked remarkably similar, with the same pale skin and strong jawline. Raven’s mother wasn’t wearing make-up, though, so her lips were just dry and slightly pasty instead of the family’s signature purple. This bothered Raven. She wasn’t sure why, it just bothered her.
“My sweet, is something troubling you?” said the Evil Queen. “Is it school? Oh, my love, I know it’s the first time you’ve been away from home for so long, but I promise you, you’ll do wonderfully there-”
“It’s not that. I’m looking forward to school. A fresh start, where I can meet new people… I think it’ll be fun. I just…” Raven paused, trying to find a polite way to put this. “I’m not you,” she said eventually. “And I don’t want to be. But your legacy is so strong there, I guess I just…”
“You don’t want to feel overshadowed?” Her mother’s brows creased in sympathy. “I understand that. I felt the exact same way about my own mother. But Raven, you are the most brilliant child I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing - I’m sure you’ll outshine me by chapters! And then everyone will know your name, Raven Queen, the most evil sorcerer this land has ever known…”
Raven twitched in annoyance. This was exactly her point! Her mother didn’t get it. “I’m going to go,” she said, taking a step back. “Dad’ll be waiting for me-”
“Oh, don’t talk to me about that man,” said her mother, rolling her eyes in disgust.
Raven’s frown deepened. She didn’t like people insulting her father. “Goodbye, Mother,” she said, turning on her heel and walking out of the room.
“Wait- Raven, wait- I’m sorry, I didn’t- I love you!”
Her mother’s last words echoed as the guards closed the door behind her. She nodded at them, and continued down the portrait-crusted corridor.
It wasn’t that she didn’t love her mother back. She did, of course she did - she had such fond memories of sitting on her mother’s lap, having stories read to her - but the stories were always about malicious witches and horrible disasters, and that wasn’t the kind of thing that little Raven had wanted to hear about. All the love in the world couldn’t change the fact that her mother was a monster, and Raven didn’t want anything to do with that side of her.
Raven’s mother, of course, was the Evil Queen, known for being evil, and attempting to poison Snow White, widely regarded as the most beautiful and innocent of all the fairy-tale princesses. Raven’s mother in particular hadn’t just been the Evil Queen, though. She’d overstepped her boundaries, imposed herself onto other people’s stories. In the ensuing devastation, she’d been captured, and placed in a prison in the mirror dimension, presumed dead by everyone except a select few, only available to visit once a year through Raven’s reflection. That had been five years ago, when Raven was eleven. She was hoping that everyone had forgotten about it by now. She knew that they hadn’t.
She stepped into her living room, and was greeted by her father, a much more welcome sight than her mother had been. She gave a genuine smile, and walked over to give him a hug.
“My precious princess,” he said, stroking her hair. “I can’t believe you’re growing up…”
“Relax,” she laughed, “I’m only going off to boarding school.”
Her father smiled, and pushed her away slightly to look in her eyes. “Are you okay?” he asked. “How did it go-”
“It went fine,” Raven said, perhaps a bit too quickly. “I should probably leave now, I don’t want to be late and make a bad first impression.”
“Alright, alright, but remember to call, will you? I want to hear from you every week-”
Raven smiled, and promised that she would, and then stepped out onto the veranda and into the portal awaiting her. It wasn’t the most comfortable way to travel, but then, no way was when you lived in a castle on the top of a mountain in the middle of nowhere. She opened her eyes, and found herself in a wide courtyard, clutching her suitcase like it was a lifeboat. For a second, she just stood there, taking it all in. The place was huge. And so light, and airy, too - how did their eyes cope with this the whole time?
Raven shook herself out, and spotted a small desk by the corner with a sign that read ‘new students’. She walked over to it, putting on her slyest smile, just like her mother had always taught her.
“Hello,” she said, “my name is Raven Queen, I’m a new student-”
The bird behind the stall shrieked, and flew away, leaving Raven standing alone with a few floating feathers.
That was weird, she thought to herself. And inconvenient. Who would give her directions now?
She wandered over to behind the stall, and rummaged through the papers there. Eventually, she found a list of all the students and their dorms. First Year Dorm Three, Ladies’ Wing. That couldn’t be too hard to find. Surely they would signpost that kind of thing, right?
And sure enough, within five or so minutes, she was pushing open the door to the first years’ common area, a bustling hall filled with new students just like her.
Everyone stopped.
Raven stopped, too, staring back at the crowd that she’d apparently interrupted. “Um…” she said, “am I… in the right place?”
The nearest person to her shuddered, and scampered away. Everybody else followed suit, rushing into either the pathways that led to the dorms, or one of the two common rooms provided by the school. Raven was left standing by herself in a long, empty space lined with lockers, some of which still swung open at the hinges.
She clamped one hand over her mouth, and felt tears begin to swim in her eyes. Was this why that bird had flown away earlier? Did people… not want to be around her? Why? Because of her mother?
She squeezed her eyes tight and marched towards the girls’ dormitory. It’s okay. This was only the first day. Soon enough, they would get to know her, and realise just how cool she was.
She stumbled a little upon entering the threshold, and counted three doors to work out which room was hers, her eyes still too blurry to read the names written on them. Wiping them desperately on her sleeve, she entered the room, and stopped dead in her tracks. This couldn’t be the basic room layout.
It had been split dead down the centre into two, with one half set out with delicate furniture, pale red hangings with gold trimmings. The other side was mostly black, with a looming, great bed, and mysterious candles. In the left hand corner was a desk, but instead of a chair, it had with it a spiky black throne, imposing and serious. It looked, for lack of a better word, evil.
Raven tried to combobulate herself, and figure out what was happening, but before she could, someone stepped out from behind the four-poster - someone whose presence would change the course of Raven’s life forever.
“Roomie!” said Apple White.