Hello, It's Mrs. Hyde

Prologue - Scene 2: The Years in Wonderland

Jessica (Narration):
"After our world was torn from us, Wonderland became our sanctuary. Strange. Dangerous. Mad. But it was also magical, and in it, we carved out a life from the ruins. For a while... we were happy. For a while, I believed we could be whole again. But Wonderland has a way of turning even dreams into illusions."

The portal dropped them in a field of silver grass under an upside-down sky. Purple clouds drifted beneath their feet, while the sun looped overhead in reverse, casting shadows that moved opposite of time. It made Jessica dizzy, blinking up at the impossible horizon, clinging to Jefferson's hand like it was the only real thing left.
They were older now. Jefferson was nearing sixteen, tall and sharp-eyed with a growing sense of responsibility on his shoulders. Jessica had just turned thirteen, her heart still bruised by their parents' death but healing in the warmth of her brother's steadfast presence.
Wonderland was a land of nonsense and rebellion, where logic had been outlawed and the world belonged to those with the imagination to survive it.
They wandered for three days before being found by the White Queen's army — soldiers made of glass and velvet, speaking in rhymes and riddles. Jefferson nearly attacked, until one of them offered Jessica a rose that bloomed and whispered, "Don't be afraid. You are not the first to run."
They were taken to the Ivory Court, where Queen Mirana, the White Queen, ruled with serenity and poetic justice. She welcomed the children with grace and gave them shelter in her sprawling palace nestled among floating trees. Her castle sat perched on a river of moonlight — not water, but real, glowing moonlight — and Jessica swore she could hear it singing at night.
It was there that they met the others.
• The Brown Hare, whose madness was warm and infectious, and who taught Jefferson how to laugh again.

• Dormie the Mouse, who taught Jessica how to sword fight with needles and nap anywhere at all.

• And then there was Alice.

She stumbled into their lives in the middle of a rebellion.
Alice had been a rebel scout, caught and nearly executed by one of the Red Queen's monstrous playing-card soldiers. Jefferson saved her by accident — flinging his hat out of instinct — and Jessica helped her up, both of them unaware that this girl would become their everything.
Alice was bold where Jefferson was reserved, compassionate where Jessica was fire. She spoke plainly, loved fiercely, and never apologized for either.
She became family.

Over the next few years, they built a new life. Jessica studied under the White Queen's mages and herbalists, slowly learning to tap into the strange blood-magic that glowed red when she was angry or afraid. The White Queen warned her to be cautious — red magic came from the heart, not the mind, and it could burn through reason if left unchecked.
Jefferson and Alice fought together in the resistance, outwitting the Red Queen's forces, freeing enchanted creatures, and disrupting supply lines. Alice's laugh became Jefferson's favorite sound, and the way he looked at her — even Jessica could see it long before he did.
They loved in quiet ways. In moments stolen between battles and twilight dances under floating candles. Jessica supported them wholeheartedly, teasing Jefferson endlessly but always watching with a warmth in her heart. Alice loved Jessica like a sister. Jessica, in return, felt grounded for the first time in years.
It was a new kind of family. Built not by blood, but by survival and shared madness.

Jessica (Narration):
"For a time, I believed we had won. That we had escaped the curse of our blood, of our pain. But darkness has a long reach... and it wears many faces."

She met Rumplestiltskin when she was nineteen.
He appeared in a crack between worlds — a sliver of reality that shouldn't have existed in Wonderland's chaotic atmosphere. Jessica had been practicing her spellwork near the Whispering Stones when the air shimmered and he stepped through like silk unraveling.
He wore a grin too wide for his face and eyes too gold to trust.
"I felt a pulse," he said, fingering the crimson glow curling around her fingertips. "Such beautiful power. So rare. So volatile. You'll burn yourself out if you're not careful."
Jessica, skeptical, crossed her arms. "And I suppose you know how to control it?"
He bowed with mocking flourish. "Rumplestiltskin. Master of magic. Teacher of troubled minds. Perhaps I can help you... learn control. Unless, of course, you enjoy scorching gardens and fainting mid-incantation?"
She did not.
So she agreed.
And so began the private lessons — whispers in the dark, strange riddles disguised as guidance, and metaphors that seemed helpful until you tried to unravel them. But she was desperate to control her magic, to not be afraid of her own hands. And so she followed.
Unaware that she was walking into a snare.

Meanwhile, Jefferson and Alice had married in secret, under the hanging starlight vines of the Moonlight River. Jessica stood beside them, dressed in red, holding Alice's trembling hand and watching her brother try not to cry.
Jessica had never been happier.
When Alice became pregnant, they moved her into hiding. The Red Queen's spies had been circling too close, and everyone knew she wouldn't spare a rebel's child. Jefferson doubled down on security, and Jessica kept her magic close, ready to burn anyone who came near.
But the threat didn't come from the Red Queen.
It came from within.

One month after Gracie's birth, during a routine lesson with Rumplestiltskin, Jessica noticed something off. His smile was too sharp. His tone too light.
"I think you've come far enough," he said, inspecting her magic like one might inspect a jewel. "Your power's matured beautifully, dearie. Just the right flavor. Like wine aged in grief."
She frowned. "What are you talking about?"
He turned, casually flicking his dagger between his fingers. "Didn't Alice ever tell you? How she got to Wonderland?"
Jessica blinked. "We all came through portals. Jefferson brought us."
"Oh no, no," Rumple laughed. "She came through mine. Years ago. I let her pass into Wonderland — in exchange for a small promise. Her soul. Of course, I let her borrow it until she was no longer of use. But now that the child is born..."
Jessica froze. "No."
"Oh come now, don't act surprised. You of all people should understand deals. But I'm not heartless, Jessica. I'll give you a chance. A trade, if you like. One life for another."
Her hands trembled. "Anything."
"Your powers," he said. "All of them. That's all I need. Just your magic. Alice can keep her soul. Fair trade, isn't it?"
Jessica hesitated. She looked at her hands, already glowing faint red with fury, with panic.
And then she nodded.
Rumple's grin widened. "Good girl."
He took her hands, whispered something ancient, and the pain that followed felt like her body was being hollowed out.
Jessica collapsed, gasping — powerless. He caught her gently, almost kindly.
Then left her there, unconscious in the woods.

When she woke, her wrists were bound to a chair. Her head throbbed.
Jefferson stood across from her, eyes bloodshot, trembling with rage.
"Alice is dead," he said, his voice cracking. "Rumplestiltskin said you... you killed her. That you couldn't stand to share me."
Jessica's scream caught in her throat. "No! I could never! I loved her too Jeff! Jeff—I—I made a deal with Rumplestiltskin! He said he was going to kill Alice because she bargained with him to come to wonderland! I—I gave up my powers—he lied! You know me—please brother, you know me!"
Tears poured down her face.
He didn't speak.
Then, slowly...he reached forward and untied her hands.
"I believe you," he whispered, voice ragged. "I don't know why, but I do. I believe you."

But no one else did.

The White Queen was devastated. Alice had been her most trusted ally. Her friend. Her light. The entire rebellion mourned.
Jessica was declared a traitor and murderer. Execution was ordered.
Jefferson, broken but still clever, made one last hat.
He kissed Gracie on the forehead, pressed the baby into his coat, and led Jessica into the chamber of echoes — the only place untouched by the Queen's eyes.
"I'm sending you away," he said, trying not to cry. "To a place where they can't find you."
"And you?"
"I'm going somewhere else. A world without magic. I'll raise Gracie there."
Jessica clutched his hand. "Don't let her forget me."
"She won't."
"Don't you forget me."
"I couldn't if I tried."
He opened the portal — two, actually — one veering left, one veering right.
They shared one last embrace. It broke them both.
Then Jessica stepped through.
Into the Land of Untold Stories.

Jessica (Narration):
*"And that was the end of the only life I'd ever known. My powers gone. My sister dead. My brother and only niece gone. My name cursed by those I once loved. All thanks to The Dark One..

I left behind a world that wanted me dead — and entered one that had never heard of me at all."*