𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐌𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐝 - 𝐀 𝐅𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐲 𝐓𝐚𝐥𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠

Hansel's POV (PART ONE)

This (and the next) chapter will be from Hansel's point of view and it takes place right before he delivers his paper to Red. It will explain a lot about his past, why Gretel isn't mentioned in the story (yet), a little bit of the OFR, etc. It's written in third-person because he isn't exactly the story's protagonist. I hope you enjoy it! :D 

~ LKS ♡

***

"Morning, Ayden!" A fourteen-year-old boy with dark, floppy hair greeted cheerily as he slid down the sleek, snow-white coat of his pegasus. He wiped his glistening forehead with the back of a pale hand, tied Peggy onto a near street lamp and walked towards the blonde figure cowering near the office building's door. 

His elder brother only grunted in reply. He shoved a thick bundle of newspapers into Hansel's arms so suddenly that his knees buckled. 

"Take it and get out of here." Ayden hissed, his brown eyes startlingly cold. 

Hansel opened his mouth to retort, but the words died on his lips. Instead, he sighed and nodded. 

Why was he even surprised? They were four years apart, but usually so close. 

Until Gretel died.

Then everything changed. 

The three orphaned siblings lived with their grandmother ever since they could remember. Ayden would leave the house every day to go to work, and Gretel would sneak off to explore the woods on her own. Hansel would secretly follow her- just to make sure that she's okay. After all, rumours had spread that the Big Bad Wolf was spotted in the Forbidden Forests and nine-year-old Hansel believed himself to be as good a warrior as Queen Cinderella's knight.

After the gingerbread house incident, he proved to have no better skills than a bridge troll. It was Gretel who saved him. Gretel who healed his burns. Gretel who returned him home. Gretel who... killed the witch. 

And it was Hansel who boasted about it to the whole town. Thanks to him, the dwarf police snatched her and locked her up in chains. She died in the Evil Queen Dungeons from food poisoning in less than a week. Hansel never received the chance to apologize to her... 

It was all his fault. 

Even his grandmother and Ayden thought so. 

Thank Wonderland Charlie didn't know, or else she might too. 

But he had the OFR on his side, and that gave him hope. 

"I said, get. Out. Of. Here!" 

"Sorry bro," Hansel mumbled and felt his face flush. He heaved the papers onto his shoulder and began walking towards Peggs. At least she didn't hate him. 

"Don't call me 'bro', Hansel. You're no brother to me. Just like how you were no brother to her." Ayden called behind him. 

That was it. He couldn't stand it anymore. He let the tears roll down his cheeks as he clambered onto Peggy because he didn't care. I don't care. I don't care. I don't care, his mind chanted, hoping that that would force the pain away. 

But it didn't. 

On the contrary, another tear streamed down his face and splashed onto the paper at the top of the pile in front of him. Its ink blurred and smudged slightly, but the paragraph was still readable. He unfolded the paper to fix it with his thumb when the headlines of another article beside it caught his eye. 

'THE TRUTH OF LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD- UNCOVERED!'

(dun dun DUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU)