The Cure to her Madness
The Return to Madness/Wonderland
A ticking noise is what Alice heard before the sound of ticking clocks took over. They were spinning much faster than they should have.
Come now Alice, it's only a dream.
"It's not a dream, it's… a memory. And it makes me sick!"
Now, focus. Wait… You're floating, again. Weightless… a cipher… relax.
"Fire! I'm in hell!"
Forget it! Abandon that memory. It's unproductive. Go… to wonderland.
"I can't. I'm trapped… in my past."
Sergeant, this girl is badly burnt. Call for a doctor!
Will she be alright?
No, Alice! Discard that delusion. Forget it. Go to Wonderland.
"I'd rather not, Doctor. My Wonderland's shattered. It's dead to me."
Your preference doesn't signify, girl. Now, Alice, where are you?
"I'm sailing. With a friend! Hmmm. It's different somehow. Things have changed."
Change is good. It's the first link in the change of forgetting.
"What's happening? Are you mad?"
I'm not mad!
"Rabbit?"
That's not right. What's he doing there?
"Is something wrong?"
Something wrong? Raaaaaather…
"Oh no, not that!"
Don't struggle, Alice. Let the new Wonderland emerge.
"Pollution! Corruption! It's killing me. Wonderland is destroyed! My mind is in ruins!"
Forget it, Alice. Block that dream! Wake at the sound.
"Aaaargh!"
XXXXX
Alice slowly came out of her trance, opening her eyes slowly as the doctor spoke to her.
"There, Alice. Better now, aren't we?" he asked.
"My head's exploded and there's a steam hammer in my chest." She told him.
"Yes, well, the cost of forgetting is high." He informed her.
"My memories make me vomit. What can I…"
"Remember other things!" the doctor cut in.
"I want to forget! Who would choose to be alone, imprisoned by their broken memories?"
Walking over to the clock, the doctor spoke.
"I'll set you free, Alice. Memory is a curse more often than a blessing."
"So you've said. Many times. And…" the doctor sat back down on his chair and cut Alice off.
"And I will say again: the past must be paid for. Now, before our next session, collect those pills from our High Street chemist."
"Very well, Doctor." With that, Alice stood up and walked to the door. Opening it, she saw the doctor's next patient.
"It's my turn to forget, Alice!"
"Now, Charlie. Your Pa was hung for killing your Ma, who beat you. Let's forget that shall we? The past is dead, Charlie."
Alice, not wanting to hear anymore closed the door and walked down the hallway, passed the other children that were being looked at by the doctor and down the stairwell. Halfway down, she saw the words 'HOME SAFE HOME' framed on the wall.
'This is no home. And it most certainly is not safe.' She thought to herself.
Going the rest of the way down, she crossed paths with two of the patients. One looked at her and spoke to the boy next to her.
"Ten years in the looney bin."
"No ma. No relations. She's an orphan." He told her.
Alice ignored them and entered what was considered her room in the building. Looking around she spoke to herself.
"Mr. Payne had no idea how humble a home could be. If not for my drawings and the photograph, this could pass for my room at the asylum. Though if I'm going to leave now, I should probably take that with me."
The 'that' of which she was referring to was a drawing that she had drew while she was at the asylum. While she had a couple of doctors check her, one stood out above the rest. Not just because he was the tallest man there, but because he treated her like she wasn't insane and that there wasn't anything wrong with her.
When one day he stopped showing up, she asked the other doctors where he was. They looked at her as if she had become even crazier. And it could have been true. After all, she didn't know anything about the man and when she described him to a doctor, he had informed her that they had never had a doctor with orange hair ever.
Whether he was real or not didn't matter to her, as the drawing she drew of him kept her saner then any of the tests that had been performed by any of the doctors at the asylum or where she was currently.
Reaching under her pillow, she withdrew the drawing and unfolded the piece of paper. She looked at the drawing, feeling herself calm down at the sight of the very detailed drawing. Alice was confused as to how she drew the picture so well, with even the little details. Such as the small scar close to the middle of his throat.
Folding the paper back up, she placed it between her striped, long-sleeved top and her dirty white apron before leaving her room. She headed for the entrance of the building, ignoring what the children said about her.
As she walked out she spoke to herself once again.
"Another day. A different dream, perhaps." With that she walked through the streets of London, past a violinist playing a sad tune and towards the chemist.
It was as she was about to enter the market, that a white cat ran past her into where she was heading. Following after it, she passed a couple of stalls before coming up to the white feline.
"Hello puss. Puss, puss, puss, puss! Don't be afraid!" the cat ignored her and started to walk away. Deciding to follow the little creature, Alice followed it down an alleyway.
'Seems following furry creatures into dark holes has become a habit. I hope it's not a vice.'
"Now, where has that cat gone?" turning a corner and seeing it again, she chased after it, losing sight of the cat as she entered a street that held the poor and the prostitutes. A man was looking her up and down. She felt disgusted. She noticed that he was about to speak to her when she caught sight of something that was a bright orange.
"No, that can't be." She quickly chased after what she saw, occasionally seeing the white cat head in the same direction. She went through another alley that had many turns, making her lose sight of both her targets.
She came upon a mist covered clearing and walked to the centre, when the mist started turning a darker colour, luckily not hindering her vision too much. She heard a noise and turned around to see a man with a deformed rabbit head sitting upon his shoulders instead of a normal human head.
It started walking towards her, while she walked back, until she hit something. Quickly turning around, she saw another of the creature. Suddenly she was surrounded by many of them and was able to get out and was backing towards her way out when a firm but strong hand landed on her shoulder and she saw that all the creatures had frozen in what she considered to be fear.
Turning to look at the owner of the hand, she was only able to see a scowl on their lips and a flash of orange before another hand landed on her other shoulder, drawing her attention. She turned to see an old lady, hunched over and with an enormous nose protruding from her face.
"My stars and garters, Alice Liddell! Slumming again are we?" she asked in a Scottish accent.
"Nurse Witless! What luck. Twice in as many months."
"Out on your own? You look frazzled, Dearie. Not doing well?"
Alice looked around, hoping to see who helped her. Not seeing anyone, she rplied to the old woman.
"Not really."
"Come along home then, and look at my pigeons. Pretty birds… like you." The nurse told Alice.
"I don't think so. Our last visit cost me several pounds and got me nowhere."
"I might recall where your mangy rabbit got to."
Alice, not wanting to head back to the place she was staying at, followed the old woman. Had she had just looked up, she would have seen a man with bright orange hair standing on the edge of a building, carefully watching her.
"Careful, Alice. Not all rabbit holes lead to Wonderland. You should be able to tell when you are in reality, Wonderland or when there is more at foot. I will keep an eye on you for now. But if you get in deep trouble, I will not hesitate to aid you. Hmmm. It would seem it is time for tea. I do hope Aizen has everything prepared.
XXXXX
Still a mess, no surprise. Her kin roasted like chestnuts right before her eyes. Ten years in Rutledge asylum wasted everyone's time. Dr Bumby won't do better. Still hauling out her questions. The fire, her memory… I deserve consideration, don't I?
Who found her new clothes? Who got her a place at Bumby's? Where'd she be without me? On the street, selling her backside!
Likes me pigeons, though. She's doled out the odd pound or two. But what I know's worth more than that. Kept her secret, haven't I?
Heard her say: "…all died on my account, I couldn't save you!"
I told her my silence is for sale, cheap!
I'm a good sort, really. Not like her nanny, that uppity whore! Or that lawyer fellow, Radcliffe, took her stupid rabbit. Need money. Warned her I'd tell the coppers if she didn't make a donation to my upkeep.
She yells and goes off her head. Days she can't remember her name, what I heard.
What's the strangest I know of is that orange-haired doctor she tells of. Always keeping her sane. Ha. No one like that exists except for in a fantasy.
XXXXX
Alice stood on the roof of the apartment building that held nurse Witless's home, surrounded by pigeon coops.
She walked onto the little bridge that connected the two roofs of the apartment building and looked out at the city. She thought she saw another flash of orange, but after shaking her head and looking out again, she saw nothing but the smoke rising from chimneys.
'Maybe I have truly gone mad.' She thought to herself before heading to Witless.
"Nurse Witless, do you mean to harm me? To send me back to the asylum?" she asked the old woman that had blackmailed her into wasting her money on the old croons drinking habit.
"I won't say no… I've a thirst you could photograph…"
"Need a drink…" her voice took on a dark echo as Alice took a step back. The old lady's back sprouted a pair of wings as she continued. "More than my whistle needs whetting…"
Witless turned around to reveal to Alice a deformed and horrifying creature, which started walking towards Alice with its mouth open and a roar bellowing out.
Alice started walking backwards as the ground beneath her feet started to crack with a strange blue light shining through. It fell away, causing Alice to fall into a purple kind of vortex, where she fell past pocket watches, chairs, gears and even tea cups. All almost the size of her.
She was suddenly passing by rusted pipes, deformed baby doll heads towards a black, murky darkness.
It was as she passed through all that and the area around her started to clear, that she slowed down as some kind of energy bubble appeared around her and when it cleared, she looked different.
She had a healthier complexion, straighter and longer hair that had a reddish tinge and appeared to be wearing make-up in the form of peach lipstick and black eyeliner with dark pink eye shadow.
Her dress had also changed, as she now was wearing the dress that she wore in Wonderland when she had gone there during her stay in Rutledge. The symbol of Ceres has been replaced with the symbol of Eris.
It was as she was slowly floating to the ground that she looked around at Wonderland. The oversized trees, floating rocks and even dominoes staying in the air. She felt at home in a way.
When she landed, she started heading in the only direction she could.
"Very upsetting journey. But I'm rid of Pris… or whatever she's become." She stopped her walking and looked around again. "At least the place I've landed is somewhat familiar."
It took Alice by surprise when none other than the Cheshire Cat himself appeared in front of her.
Taking a closer look, she saw that the cat was skinnier since her time in Rutledge and his fur had taken a darker hue. His tribal tattoos had become more prominent, while his golden hoop earring became silver in colour and had been place on his left ear. His eyes were a darker yellow and the shape of the tuft of fur on the end of his tail had become a bit sharper.
"About time too, Alice." He told her.
"Blasted cat! Don't try to bully me! I'm very much on edge." She informed the cat.
"Purrrrfect. When you're not on edge, you're taking up too much space.
"You're no help at all." Alice told the cat with the Cheshire smile.
"But you know I can be…"
"I'll frighten myself when necessary, thank you very much. I was hoping to escape from all that."
"Abandon that hope! A new law reigns in this Wonderland, Alice. It's very rough justice all around. We're at risk here. You… be on your guard!" he was just about to disappear, when he looked like he remembered something. "Oh, and Alice? Do look out for your favourite doctor, why don't you."
With that the cat disappeared, leaving Alice alone.
"Wait! What do you mean my favourite doctor? Is he somehow here? In Wonderland?"
She did not receive an answer. Clenching her fists, she looked up with determination in her eyes as she started walking forwards on her new journey in Wonderland.
EXTRA
"Three sugars please."
"Anything else?"
"Aizen… can I please first drink my tea before we get to the questions?"
"I was asking if you would like to have some honey, or biscuits… or maybe even a scone."
"Oh… sorry."
"That is okay."
…
…
…
"Okay! I need you to look into someone for me."
"Why haven't you done it?"
"I need to keep an eye on someone."
…
"Is that all?"
"All that I'm going to tell you."
…
…
"Would you like more?"
"Yes please."
"Her name is Alice Liddell."
"The little girl that lost all of her family in a fire?"
"Yeah, 'all' of her family."
"You won't tell me anymore, will you?"
"No."
"Very well. Who do you want me to look into?"
"Doctor Angus Bumby."
"Alice's Psychiatrist?"
"Yeah."
"How much do you want on him?"
"Everything you can get."
…
…
…
"That would mean you want to know everything about him."
"Exactly."
"I understand. I'll get right on it."
"Thank you and have a nice day."
"Goodbye… Ichigo."
XXXXX
[A.N]
Yay! Another story.
Just like the game itself. I'm going to try and keep things slightly confusing without giving too much away in the first couple of chapters, which I seem to do with almost all my stories.
Oh yes, I also want to keep the extras focused on Ichigo and Aizen. With Ichigo, it will probably be about his time with Alice and Aizen's will be about him collecting information. I'd love it if you guys would be willing to give some suggestions for what they could be doing in the extras.
Please help me by giving good criticism and pointing out mistakes that I have made. Thank you.
I will mention that the next story I upload will either be a Bleach x Deadpool (game) or Bleach x Max Payne. Please don't put in a review of which one you want up as I am currently working on both of them.
Hope you enjoyed the story so far.