Anita Lucas

"Humans make us seem that we are the monsters. You only become one when you start believe in it."

- Anita to her daughter

Anita is a character on Once Upon a Time. She makes her debut in the seventh episode of the second season. She is portrayed by guest star Annabeth Gish, and does not have a Storybrooke counterpart.

History
Anita is Red Riding Hood's mother and leader of a wolf pack. Her mother, Widow Lucas, took Red from her because she did not want her granddaughter growing up as a wolf. Widow Lucas told Red her mother died when she was an infant. When Snow White and Red try to track down and find the wolf that has been terrorizing Red Riding Hood's home village, they mistakenly believe it is the blacksmith's son and Red's beloved, Peter. Red tries to talk sense into Peter while Snow White pretends to be Red asleep in bed. When caught, Widow Lucas and Snow White hurry to Red and Peter. Along the way, Widow Lucas tells Snow White that Red's mother was also a wolf and was killed when she was put down by hunters. ("Red-Handed")

This is found to be untrue after Snow White and Red run away from the village. Red chances upon another wolf, Quinn, who steals her cloak and leads her to an abandoned castle-turned-wolf den run by the pack leader, Anita. Red meets her mother for the first time, and is happy to find a place she belongs and doesn't have to be ashamed of her wolf self. As Red explains that Widow Lucas raised her without telling her of her wolf self, Anita is clearly not happy. She tells her daughter that she sees thing differently: the wolf is not something one should be ashamed about. When she discovers her daughter still experiences blackouts when she turns, she teaches her how to control herself in her wolf form and how to accept it.

Meanwhile, Snow White follows her friend's wolf tracks, and finds Red in Anita's wolf den. Quinn begins to kill her, but she is released only after Red pleads with her mother. However, Quinn is killed when the Evil Queen's men find the den in their search to find and capture Snow. Anita blames Snow White for Quinn's death, and attempts to kill her once the moon rises. In her wolf form, she attacks a defenseless Snow, but then Red turns and, using what her mother taught her, keeps control and protects her friend from her mother. In the process, she is inadvertently impaled by Red. As Anita lies dying, she accuses her daughter of choosing humans over her, but Red says she chose herself over becoming a killer. ("Child of the Moon")

Trivia
"Anita, a sexy and earthy sorceress who is devoted to taking in lost souls. However, don't let her maternal instincts fool you, because she can be ferocious when it comes to the people she cares about."
 * Her original casting call description: Anita, 45-50, a sexy sorceress who has lived apart from her family due to their fear of her magic. She is extremely protective of others such as herself.
 * The character seems to have been changed from the original casting call, as ABC's press release for Child of the Moon later described Anita as "the charismatic and mysterious leader of a pack of humans who, like Red, turn out to be wolves.
 * In Sanskrit, the name means "without guile; leader" and in Spanish, the name is a pet form of Ana.