A Thief and a Queen

The Last Lifetime

My sixth entry for Inspired by OQ Week, based on a manip by starscythe. You can see it on my Twitter.

Always read the fine print.

Regina couldn't help but think that as she paced around her prison for this lifetime—something called a penthouse, located in New York City—thought it was quite different from what she was used to. Tall buildings stretched toward the sky, illuminating the night once the sun went down. She looked out her window and could see their magnificent displays without having to tilt her head up at all. When she looked down, the people and the strange contraptions that populated the streets looked like ants. She wondered if this was what a giant felt like, looking down at the world from their beanstalk.

She had a lot more space to move around in this time. She had her own bedroom and a luxurious bathroom—with a toilet that flushed her waste away rather than a chamber pot she had to keep tossing out the window—and a tub she could fill with hot water. There was a large kitchen that was always stocked with food, allowing her to cook for herself this time—once she figured out how to use the different contraptions in the room. She even had her own parlor, with couches and chairs and a bookcase as big as a wall that contained books on every subject imaginable. Regina enjoyed making herself a cup of hot chocolate and settling into one of the chairs to spend the day reading.

This world also had marvelous technology that allowed her to find ways to entertain herself, such as the TV mounted to her wall. She could watch fictional stories akin to the plays her father used to take her to see, real life stories about people and animals and things in this world and she was able to know everything that was going on thanks to something called the news. TV had even taught her new recipes to cook in the kitchen, helping her navigate all the tools she had been given.

She also had something called the internet, which allowed to her watch even more filmed plays (movies and TV shows) as well as learn all about the strange land outside her window. There was a chance she would finally be able to leave and experience it, so she wanted to be ready.

Which brought her back to the bane of her existence—the curse.

The sad thing was that she had brought it on herself to escape an unwanted marriage. After discovering what Regina had done, her mother had used her magic to show her what her life as his queen would've been like. They saw only loneliness, neglect and violence—especially when she was executed for being unable to produce another heir since no one would dare fault the aging king who had struggled to even sire one child with his first wife. While she didn't regret not going through with the marriage after that—and it had silenced her mother as well—she still wished she had read all the details of the curse before casting it on herself. She had, she might've sought out another way to avoid marrying him or at least someone more versed in magic than she who could alter it for her.

Regina had cursed herself to never marry until she found someone who would love her unconditionally and who she loved the same way. It had seemed like an answer to her prayer—the magic would prevent Leopold from marrying her and she would be able to find happiness. She had forgotten that curses were meant to be placed on other people and designed to be very difficult to break. After casting it, she found she was unable to leave her family's home—not even to go outside. Her mother had discovered which curse she had used and explained the nuances of it. Regina was to be trapped in a place until she found the person who would be able to break the curse, which would set up obstacles to prevent him (or her, though Regina hadn't dared to tell that to her mother—she was already irate at having to give up her dreams of having Regina on a throne) from doing so.