Regina had been good. No—she had been great. She had let herself believe in love, in redemption. A man from another kingdom, a man she dared to trust. A commoner, yes, but for him, she lowered her guard, softened the steel of her defenses.

She adorned herself in a gown of the richest blue, a color far too hopeful for the fate that awaited her.

---

A mistake. Such a mistake.

Regina—the Evil Queen, the woman who had clawed her way toward something resembling happiness—stood frozen.

Steven.

With her.

A woman of delicate beauty, soft where Regina was sharp, fragile where Regina was unyielding. And he—Steven—pressed his lips against this woman’s skin, lingering in his treachery. So effortless. So cruel.

She had been deceived. Toyed with. Used.

She felt a fool. A fool.

The fire rose in her throat, choking back what little restraint remained.

---

The tears were an insult she refused to let fall.

With a storm of fury, she descended upon them. Her fingers curled around the woman’s arm as she loomed over her, eyes ablaze.

“How long have you been seeing him?” The words cut like a blade, her voice raw with betrayal. But the woman did not answer.

Coward.

Regina did not wait—did not care.

A sweep of her hand and a cloud of violet smoke enveloped them, swallowing them whole.

The castle walls greeted them with ruthless silence as Regina threw the woman against the cold stone.

“Why? Why must you take everything from me?” Her voice cracked, but the fury did not wane. She had tried, tried, to be good. And what had it earned her? Nothing but humiliation.

She had been changing.

No. Not anymore.

Then she remembers who she truly is.

The Evil Queen. Not some.. Lovesick woman.