What If There Wasn't A Happy Ending For Alcina?

What if there wasn't a happy ending for Alcina?

What if you two met in the forest when you were picking up wild mushrooms for that night's dinner and she helped you when you got attacked by a lycan?

Maybe Alcina was silently watching you from afar, debating if she should take you to her castle to try and make wine out of you and give your flesh to her daughters or maybe she was just passing by. You don't know for sure, but you do know that you weren't afraid when she slashed the creature with poise and elegance. You were in awe of those golden eyes that looked at you as if expecting the inevitable hunt where you'd run away and she'd tiredly chase you. She waited but you never did, you never showed her a single one of the usual reaction she'd get from other wanderers and that made her curious of you.

What if after days of returning to the same spot in the woods in hope of seeing you again you'd finally show up to perform the same task you did when you first met, and after you initiated conversation with a silly topic such as the day's awful cold that was always the same Alcina found herself enjoying your company.

Time passes by in a blur and you don't notice how much Alcina cares for you nor know just how much you mean to her now after years of knowing each other. The fact that you're to only other person alive she allows to hug her aside from her daughters flies over your head just as any other obvious things such as the way Alcina search for your hand when she's stressed, or how she puts aside her duties for a second to let you show her the new weird bone you found outside.

You two get so close that you sleep in the same bed as her at nights because the cold is too much for you sometimes and the Lady is a walking heater. Of course you miss the way she kisses your forehead and gently caresses your cheek with her thumb when you are deeply asleep.

What if Alcina looks forward to every night to hold you in her arms, wondering what would happen if she were bold enough to tell you how she feels but never daring to, settling for the warm and gentle feeling of your breath against her neck when you sleep without a care in the world and hoping that having you close is enough to quench her yearning. And maybe is her wishful thinking speaking, but perhaps you're starting to feel something else for her than a close friendship...?

It's a clear day when you're introduced to Alcina's siblings. A clear and beautiful day when you see her.

Quiet and small compared to the other Lords, Lady Beneviento catches your attention. When you get the chance to take her hand in yours as a greeting you swear you feel a spark of electricity with the touch.

Alcina doesn't know how to feel when you spend the rest of the day talking about Donna. How her voice is so soothing and calm. How her hands look so delicate but are strong and how when you touched them you noticed that they were calloused by years of crafting. You tell Alcina how amazed you are by Donna's sewing skills seeing as the dress she wore was made by herself. You tell her how Donna's little giggle made you happy because it sounded refreshing to you despite being so quiet.

Alcina feels a pang of hurt in her heart. You never expressed like that about her. Your eyes never sparkled when she told you about her wine making skills. You never complimented that much her melodic voice whenever she sang to you. There wasn't a smile that big on your face when she held you tiny hands in her own.

Things only get worse from that moment when Donna invites you to her home for a tea party. Of course Alcina and the girls are invited too, but as soon as you arrive it's clear who's going to be the center of your attention.

The more you spend time with Donna (when she finally told you to call her by her first name you ran excitedly to Alcina to tell her everything and she of course couldn't deny you) the more forgotten Alcina felt. It was almost as if you had lost all interest on her, as if you put her aside just like a doll for a child who grew up.

When you come back from Donna's, after she let's you see her face without the veil Alcina thinks you're catatonic with how you wouldn't move from the window for hours, only watching the extense of the land and letting out a sigh once in a while. Until you broke the silence and startled her.

"Donna is breathtaking..." Was enough to make Alcina's heart clench.

When you tell Alcina you're starting to feel things way above platonic for Donna, that's when she opens her eyes. That's when she knows she's lost the battle. But its okay, as long as nothing happens between you two she still can have a chance to change your mind. She hasn't lost the war yet.

Except... A few weeks later that felt like torture to Alcina, having to hear you pinning over her little sister, you finally dare to make a move.

Next thing Alcina knows, Angie is yelling how happy she is that Donna finally got a partner. She doesn't want to believe it and forces herself to think that by any miracle another person managed to win the doll maker's affections, but when inquired by Heisenberg, Donna responds with her own shaky voice that is you who asked her to be a couple.

Alcina thinks she can live with this. She doesn't wish ill for her beloved sister, though she can't help but hope that you realize that there are others more suited to be your partner, someone elegant and powerful such as herself.

Gaining your favor proves harder and harder with how bewitched you are by your new girlfriend, and Alcina finds herself in bed crying her eyes out at the thought that another pair of arms that isn't hers is holding you at night.

One day Alcina approaches Donna, curious as to how she's adapting to a shared life, but she regrets it as soon as she get a taste of what would it be like to have you by her side. Oblivious to Alicia's inner turmoil, Donna tells her how she's never been this happy. She tells Alcina how going to sleep being certain that you'll be there with an arm lazily thrown around her waist when she wakes up is the best feeling in the world. She tells Alcina how whenever you kiss her, her world becomes a bit brighter and how many fuzzy butterflies dance in her stomach everytime you pepper her face with playful and tender kisses.

Alcina is happy for her sister, she really is, but she can't help but sob when you gather all the Lords and kneel in front of your beloved lady to ask her to share your lives for as long as you have left, with a promise to always love her if she lets you. Everyone believe Alcina is getting sentimental because of the proposal, and in a way she is, but for a whole different reason. She lost the war. She lost you. The only person she's ever loved in a long, long time has been snatched from her and she can't do anything about it.

That night the strongest wine bottles on the cellar are emptied, loud cries can be heard all over the caste and worried daughters try their best to comfort their mother.

The day of the wedding is one of a kind. A small celebration but filled with beautiful ornaments and decorated with the warm light of a sunset. Donna finally frees herself from the black dress and changes it for a white one matching Angie's. Seeing your beloved fiance walk down the aisle toward you makes you giddy. You can't be more happy when you say your vows, which you needed Alcina's help to write the way you wanted them to come.

You've grown to love the other Lords as part of your family and somehow they accepted you as you are, of course they would attend the ceremony. You turn to them before saying the awaited 'i do' and lock eyes with your dear friend Alci, who has changed her own outfit for the occasion, this time a light decorative lace veil with exquisite embroidery typical of her aesthetic covering a bit more than half of her face. She gives you a smile, one that tou can't help but feel tight and forced, but you make a point of address that later in the celebration.

Seeing you lift Donna's own white veil to meet her in the middle for a tender kiss filled with love and laughter made Alcina's heart shatter. A single tear rolls down her cheek as she shuts her eyes to avoid seeing the way you both can't stop smiling into the kiss, but it's too late for her, the image is already burned in her memory.

Later, when everyone is celebrating and drinking their asses off you find a single Lady sitting far from the ruckus, quietly sipping from a gold goblet. You seat and slide next to her, tapping on her shoulder effectively getting her attention.

"Why are you so glum, Alci? Looks like you're not enjoying the part, is everything okay?"

She looks at you from behind her veil and politely smiles. "It's nothing, darling. Im just really happy to see that my sister finally found love..." With a flourish of her cup she continues. "It just makes me wonder, what have i done to be prived of such happiness."

She tries to hide it, but her voice is filled with sadness. You've known her long enough to notice her mannerisms. Something else is bothering her.

"Aww, don't worry my dearest friend. Im sure someone will come to you when you least expect it." Alcina looks at you with an expression you can't quite read and it makes you anxious. "I'm sure of it."

Alcina's eyes lock with yours before taking a deep breath. "I've already found love, darling. Sadly, it looks like it wasn't meant for me."

"Come on, don't say that. You're beautiful, Alcina." The lady's breath hitches, expecting a blow that will definitely destroy her. "You're one of the most smart people i know. You're funny, you're loyal. The way you care for your loved ones has no other match. You're someone spectacular and you deserve the world." Your hand goes to her shoulder and squeeze to prove your point. "Anyone who doesn't see that, well it's their loss."

Alcina's eyes are glossy, but she refuses to cry in front of you, opting instead to face forward and stare at Heisenberg trying to chug a whole bottle of whiskey in one swing. Your next words though, that was what broke her.

"Heck, if i wasn't happily taken i would've definitely tried to court you."

"Oh..." Is all she say. An out of breath 'oh' that after a minute is enough to make you comprehend. Suddenly all of her odd behavior makes sense to you. You now know that it wasn't a dream when Alcina had you in her arms singing into your neck softly while holding you close to her body. You realize that every flirty comment she ever made towards you were far from a joke. But above all, you realize the damage your last words could have inflicted in her already broken heart.

You stand up with a jump, apologizing without end before hurrying back to the others, leaving an Alcina silently crying her unrequited feelings out. She doesn't dare to ruin her sister's happiness, and she will most definitely not get in the way of you two, but that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt her.

Downing the last of the liquid on her goblet, she stands and makes her way home, alone...

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@thejennystuttle

Sorry for the angst uwu

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