Fell way far too down the rabbit hole

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Cora.

Hey there! Just a friendly reminder/PSA from your friendly neighborhood Pixiemage!

“Dead Dove: Do Not Eat” is too often (incorrectly) used as a cover-all tag, on fics ranging from Vaguely Uncomfortable to Serious Shit, as a replacement for any intense tags relating to the story. People will use it to say “Holy shit guys some INTENSE SHIT happens in this story” without actually saying what that Intense Shit™ is.

In actuality, the “Dead Dove” tag is meant to be used in addition to other warning tags. Pulled from a scene from the show Arrested Development (look it up on YouTube!), it means “Hi! Hey! I labeled this fic to warn you of what’s in it, so you might REALLY want to read those labels! This fic is exactly what it says on the tin! The tags are accurate! Don’t say I didn’t warn you, because this is me warning you! Read the tags!”

So before you accidentally use the “Dead Dove: Do Not Eat” tag without context, here’s your preemptive lesson for next time. Please tag your fics accordingly! Ta!

Seeing her mother simply sitting at the table, hands trembling in her lap, Regina couldn’t have kept the smirk from her voice if she’d tried. “Something wrong, Mother? You’re awfully pale.”

Saying nothing, Cora didn’t even look at her, staring down at the wood of the table.

Regina continued on as if Cora ignoring her were the most natural thing in the world. Which it most certainly wasn’t. “Isn’t this just what you wanted, mother?” she spat the last word out like it was the curse she had cast. “Reunited at last, in the town I built from nothing. Aren’t you proud of me?” Her voice lowered, dripping with darkness and threat. She raised her hand beneath her mother’s chin and forced the older woman to look at her with wide, frightened eyes. “Or aren’t you happy here? Perhaps I should head to my lovely little vault and check on your heart to see how frantically it beats. I could even squeeze it a little, just to make sure?”

“No, Regina!” the older woman plead, plastering a smile on a face long-stained with tears. “Everything’s fine, dear! I promise.”

“I wish very much you were not so heartless..”

Inspired by this gifset. Just a short piece to satisfy my need for soul-crushing angst. Unedited, I apologize for all the errors I’m sure you’ll find. I’d say ‘enjoy’ but I don’t think that’s appropriate here xD