You know, I typically don't do this. Write for things that will be forgotten utterly by most people within a month or so, I mean. But this one was very persistent. I blame Johnny Depp, myself.
Obviously, I don't own any of this. God knows who does at this point...is Lewis Carroll public domain now? He very well could be. Regardless, I still own nothing.
Alice had been back in England for nearly a month before it happened.
That time had mostly been concerned with business and family matters. There were reports to be made and matters to be negotiated with Lord Ascot, with whom she had now entered a full-fledged business partnership. Margaret had given birth to a son while Alice was away; she'd spent several days at her sister's home learning to be an aunt (and once again making certain that Lowell knew his place). All very important things, of course, which is why Alice always felt vaguely guilty whenever she thought to herself that she had had no personal time at all. Hers was the kind of temperament that felt this loss keenly. Life-After-China was proving to be too fast-paced; it left no time to think, no time to remember. So, early one morning, she rose quietly and slipped out into the pale morning for a solitary stroll. And that is when it happened.
She was standing beneath a flowering tree, staring blankly into space and thinking of everything and nothing at all, when a large, vibrantly blue butterfly fluttered across her field of view, coming to rest on a blade of grass a few metres away. Alice blinked, and then smiled slowly. She took a few careful steps closer and knelt in the grass, heedless of the dew soaking her dress. "Hello, Absalom," she greeted quietly. The vague, unsettled feeling in the pit of her stomach, the one she'd been feeling for a month now, was quickly fading. This was what she had been waiting for.
The butterfly took off again, fluttering slowly and jerkily towards the tree line. Alice got to her feet and followed it, into the forest. Her long blond hair began to slip free of the few ribbons she wore, picking up twigs and leaves as she went despite the rather sedate pace. Last time...well, last time had been a proper race, she thought with a wry smile. But then, last time there had been a war on. Now, order had returned, and she did not need to be anyone's Champion; she was excited to just visit her old friends, more excited than she had been about anything in quite a while. Alice didn't regret her choice to come back to her own world - not at all! But for all the Chinese adventures she's had, nothing could ever quite compare to Underland. In truth, the comparison probably wasn't fair; how could any Earthly place ever measure up? She was a creature of Earth, but a piece of her soul was, and forever would be wrapped up in the bright fabrics of the other world.
Looking ahead, she realized that she could no longer see her bright blue guide. Heart clenching in sudden fear, she bounded ahead a few paces, breaking through the brush into a small clearing. The ground here was rocky, with little grass and no flowers. Despite the pale sunlight filtering down through the leaves, the early morning chill seemed suddenly sharper. In the center of the clearing grew a large oak tree: on its ancient, gnarled trunk sat the butterfly, its wings opening and closing idly, and amidst its twisting roots there was a large hole. Quite too large for a rabbit.
Alice surveyed the scene cautiously for a moment. There was something about it - she took a step forward and opened her mouth to ask a question. All that came out, however, was a surprised gasp as the ground beneath her crumbled and gave way without warning. In a second, she was gone, and the clearing was once again still.
For a moment, nothing moved. Then the butterfly left its perch. Slowly it circled the hole once, then twice, as if debating its next course of action. A bird chirruped loudly from a nearby tree, and for a second it hovered near the lip of the opening - might it descend? But it just as quickly took off again, fluttering up towards the sky. Birds or not, it was safer here.
This was the prologue. The chapters will be much longer. Also, I do very much appreciate reviews!