More Bodyswap!AU sketches, this time inspired by the @sketch-wolf comment on the AU master post here. Ingo is gonna eat his brother out of house and home.
AHAHAHAHAHA. First off all the points for Ruby for calling Regina right away. And for doing THE THING to prove who she is. I had to read that twice. And then again. IT'S HILARIOUS. What a fun night they had. And this whole thing of "I pretended to have forgotten" - intriguing rituals they have. omg But also I'm now thinking about how Belle truly feels in a body that had an exhausting night. ;) Regina switching into her mayor voice towards Miss French. *chef's kiss*
Yes, Belle waking up (again) will be the next part. Tehehe. 😊
I'm really liking the reaction to that nuclear option Red used to get Regina to listen to her. Like, "what?! You are just casually gonna mention that and not expand?" Which was the whole point of matter-of-factly shaking Regina out of her irritation.
And also I'm surprised you haven't latched on the tiny flashback of Ruby and Belle doing research in the library together. Into the accents and stuff. Cause that'll gonna get important eventually.
!!!!!!! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!!!!!! ~thank you so much~ That is such a lovely start to the Red Beauty Queen bodyswap. I am excited and happy and just amazed you really did jump on this. I already have so many questions. Especially about Belle's last night in her body, hitting the pillow and crying and being miserable. But I'm also here for Ruby going to sleep with Regina and waking up in her bed - usually - being all casual and content. And Regina draping herself around her girlfriend. But ahahahaha now it's Belle and what horror show this must be for her. Regina! Of all people! And the way these two feel so out of balance, well truly are out of balance. Magnificent!! The scratchy and bland B&B sheets vs the super luxurious ones, what a contrast. And I like the way you have them figure out their different bodies, highlighting all the differences in shapes etc. THANK YOU!! :3 :3 :3 Uh, yesyes, I'm a bandit, stealing people's times and thoughts, making them focus on things I want. XD
Oh, I forgot to answer this! Sorry! Okay first of all yours and @konako reactions was the reason I just went and written it. And I am so glad you picked up on most of the breadcrumbs I scattered about. If you keep feeding me like this, I'll definitely keep writing it. More so since the short format kinda lifted the pressure quite a bit.
Since @konako and @lovecanbesostrange have been provoking and encouraging me, here’s the first installment of the Body Swap AU featuring Red Beauty Queen.
The Inciting Incident, Part 1.
Waking up was a long and arduous process that morning. And not for the obvious reasons. Yes, she did indulge a bit the evening prior, but it was just two glasses of wine. Or was it more? She definitely did not drink any of Madam Mayor’s famous cider. Now that would have been dangerous as that magical drink was nothing less than a cunning trap for anyone but Regina herself, who had seemingly developed an immunity from the worst effects of the drink over the years. No, Red learned her lesson quite some time ago. And so the rule was established reserving the apple cider only for special occasions. Which yesterday was decidedly not, it was a day like any other. Usual, average, calm. A rarity in a town such as Storybrooke, that attracted more trouble and magical shenanigans more than tourists.
All the more reason to enjoy the routine while it lasted. And Ruby did. Like on any Friday for the last three months, it went something like this. Early morning run with Mulan, regular shift at the diner or covering for any unavailable waitress, stopping by the station for lunch with Emma, running one errand or another and finally… showing up for date night at the manor.
Ruby turned and stretched under the sheet, her eyes pressed closed as tight as possible. She let out a slow sigh. Then tried to burrow deeper into the waning warmth and recapture whatever dream she was so rudely interrupted from having. There won’t be an alarm going off on a Saturday. Saturday was her cheat day. No need to wake up early, no work until late afternoon and all the company needed to make the morning. However, today the warmth and comfort was somehow off. The sheet she was under was scratchy and too heavy, very unlike the satin sheets Red had fallen asleep amongst. The pillow under her head was higher and fluffier than what it was supposed to be. The feeling of unease bubbled slowly, making a small crease appear between her furrowed brows. Ruby pulled air through her nose and shifted around on the bed.
Something else was missing. She reached further across the bed. It was all just a bad dream, she knew exactly what would let her go to sleep again. What she needed was that smooth expanse of skin. That warmth and softness, and faint smell of apples in the silky raven locks. Just a bit further, a bit more, there…
*THUD!*
“Ouch! What the hell?” Ruby yelled and grumbled, trying to get her bearings.
The last of her sleepiness had been expunged in the most ungraceful of ways: by tumbling out of bed – hair covering her face, the bedsheets and the comforter all knotted around her body, arms and legs twisted at odd angles – and connecting quite painfully with the floor. She struggled with the coverings already expecting to hear laughter at her expense. And yet she felt groggy, her body responded slowly and not in the way she expected. It was not drunkenness, it was not tiredness, she felt discombobulated as if desperately clutching to the mast on a ship at sea in the storm. But the room around her was still and dry. Finally, with a great effort she ripped the knot of the sheet and comforter off herself and tried to stand up. Tried being the apt word. Instead of getting to her feet in one smooth motion Red felt her knees buckle and she collapsed to her hand and kneed, heaving. Sure the room looked dry, but still? Nope, everything was spinning. She tried to calm her breathing and the slight tremble she could see in her arms. Ruby lifted her hands and roughly rubbed her face, she then pulled the wave of hair that still covered it out of her vision. As she tried to concentrate on what was in front of her eyes, she focused on her hands. Her fingers were shaking and…
They were the wrong fingers!
It sounded ridiculous, even in her own head, but those were not her hands. Ruby had just a few days before applied a brand new layer of bright red nail polish, yet the nails before her were clean. The hand itself was rounder, with fewer muscles and veins showing, the fingers – shorter and less bony. Her frantic eyes jumped to the strands of hair now hanging free around her bowed head. That hair wasn’t hers either! Lighter brown, but a different shade, almost carmine, and with shorted, thicker curls... She knew that hair! No, it could not possibly be!
“Regina, something is wrong! I–” Red swallowed her own words as soon as she spoke.
The voice that came out of her mouth was groggy from sleep, but, going with the theme of this bizarre morning, it was not hers! It was lower, with a bit of a rasp, and the accent wrapped around Ruby’s words without meaning to.
Panicking already, Red looked up for the first time since he landed on the floor. The queen sized bed and beige walls she was expecting to see weren’t there, instead she saw the familiar 80s wallpaper and the paneling of the B&B. She was in one of the rooms at the Bed & Breakfast she knew like the back of her hand. A turn of phrase, which under the circumstances sounded rather ironic. Ruby finally stood up on weak legs and either the room has gotten bigger, or she has gotten shorter! Quickly turning around (and then having to hold on to the wall lest she end up on her ass again from the whiplash thanks to the quick movement) Red made her way to the closet, where she knew there'd be a mirror affixed to the inside of the door.
And there it was. In full view reflected on the surface of the full-height mirror. The impossible, bizarre happenstance, that was nonetheless real.
In the mirror looking back at Ruby was the reflection of a very scared, disheveled, with red eyes and puffy cheeks, clad in cute peach pajama Belle.
Only one thought kept rattling around as Ruby tried to wrap her head around what had happened.
“If I’m here right now, then where is Belle?”
* * *
Waking up was a long and arduous process that morning. And not for the obvious reasons. Or maybe it was rather obvious. Waking up after lying awake the better part of the night probably wouldn’t be a picnic. Especially if the last thing one did before falling asleep was to get mad enough to punch the pillow until her knuckles hurt or to cry herself to sleep. In that order.
And yet not only the tiredness had kept Belle from even trying to open her eyes to the morning sun. Today felt like one of the best mornings. For some reason her usual bedding has transformed into the most comfortable and luxurious bed she had ever slept on. The sheet thrown over her would probably be too thin to keep her warm on any other day, but right now it seemed quite nice. There was warmth and softness and smoothness all around her. Also the smell! Even half-asleep still, she could smell an assortment of aromas. The dull smell of the sheet freshener, faint traces of wine and much stronger smell of apples. Her unexpectedly sharp hearing picked up the rustling of the curtains against the morning breeze, the ticking of the clocks and slow breathing.
And that was not all. As the senses came back to her, pulling Belle out of her foggy state, she became more and more aware of her surroundings. What she felt was nice… and confusing. Her ears heard the breathing that was another’s, her nose caught the scent of apple and sweat, and her skin – oh! – felt the smooth skin pressed to hers and the heartbeat pulsing right next to her own heart. There was someone else in her bed!
Belle’s eyes shot open and she had to blink rapidly to get rid of the blind spots dancing in front of her. She wiggled her fingers and tried to move, realizing at once two alarming things: one, she was completely naked; and two, there was another equally naked woman wrapped around her torso!
She opened her mouth, but no scream came out. She tried to pull back, but the grip around her waist only tightened. Belle frantically looked around, seeking – help? A weapon? A reason? A dancing clown explaining it was all a nightmare? Something! She herself did not know. What she saw was a room she had never seen before. Beige walls and white carpet, long curtains covering the entrance to the balcony. And an ornate mirror affixed above the vanity right across the queen sized bed. But the woman looking back at Belle with wide blue eyes wasn’t Belle herself!
It was Ruby!
Ruby with standing at odd angles hair and no make up! Ruby, naked with small purple dots covering her neck and collarbones!
Belle raised her hand and let travel along the neck and jaw up to the heated cheek. She could feel the touch as if it was her own, but she also felt exactly what the mirror was showing. Harder muscles, sharper jawline, more prominent cheekbones! She shuddered. This was some kind of a nightmare, it had to be!
“Hhhmm, why are you so tense this early in the morning? I thought I had tired you out, wolf. Or is it an invitation for an encore?”
The raven haired head at Belle’s chest moved, causing her to jump. The silky-smooth voice served nothing to calm her down and, frankly, Belle did not hear a word of what the woman said. She just stared as her bed companion stretched next to her, letting out a small yawn. In the process the short wave of dark tresses pulled away and Belle could finally see exactly who it was that she was freaking out about.
Regina tired her head as the satisfied smile slowly left her face. She narrowed her eyes and rose up on an elbow, “Ruby? Are you alright, darling?”
“M-madam Mayor?” spluttered Belle in the voice too high and wide to feel even remotely her own.
Everything was too much! Up suddenly became down and down – up! So Belle had done what she had very rarely done in her life. Instead of facing a problem straight on, with the power of her will and intellect, she gave in to her instinct and what it was screaming at her to do immediately.
Which was to run! She had thrown the sheet away and as she were – that is to say without a thread of clothes on her – made a run for it!
She had a vague idea about the balcony, but before any kind of play had a chance to form in her head, it all went awry. Jumping to her feet had made Belle feel nauseous and trying to run made her lose her balance. Everything was wrong – her legs and arms were too long, her center of mass somewhere else and the strength of her limbs propelled her way too far way too fast! Belle had lost balance, getting tripped up by the body she didn’t know how to use and she made a rather beautiful pirouette around her axis on her way towards the floor. Of course, that wouldn’t have been all that awful with the fluffy white carpet covering the whole room; but, with a loud ringing in her ears and the feeling of the whole room flipping around, by the time she landed on the floor, Belle had already fainted.
