All games have rules, Peter. You must know that already, don't you?
"Please, Nightmare, just bend the rules for me. For Alice's happiness," Peter pleaded.
Fine. But only for Alice.
Chapter 1
Alice's POV
"What was that, Lorina?" I asked, sitting up in the grass. The Sunday afternoon heat bore down on my back, warming me to my core.
"I asked you what you were doing, laying in the grass like that," she said, looking up from her book.
"Oh, nothing. Just resting. What are you reading?"
"This?" Lorina gestured to the book in her lap.
"Yes, that one. Is it another psychology book?" I asked, sitting up fully and pulling my knees close to my chest.
"Of a sorts," Lorina shrugged.
"What's it about?"
"It's about a girl who gets taken to Wonderland. Once there-"
"I don't need to know that part. How does it end?" I demanded.
"What a silly one you are," Lorina chuckled, "The girl wakes up."
"Wakes up?" I asked, awestruck, "She just wakes up?"
"Yes, Alice, the girl wakes up."
"Doesn't sound like my kind of book," I mumbled.
"What a shame. Do you want to play a game, instead then?"
"What sort of game?" I wondered absentmindedly.
"A game of cards."
"Yes!" I said. It's one of the rules, I must play cards.
"I'll go in and grab a deck. Don't fall asleep now," Lorina chuckled as she stood. As she walked away I watched how her frilly clothing swayed as she walked. Those silly clothes fit her, but would look ridiculous on me.
"I am awfully sleepy," I murmured to myself, laying back down on the grass. "A few more minutes couldn't hurt," I mumbled, closing my eyes.
Suddenly, a small white rabbit in plaid came before my eyes. "Come now, Alice! You must chase me!" The rabbit yelled at me. "Or else we shall be frightfully late and Vivaldi would not like that! She would be very displeased!"
"Surely I must be dreaming, rabbits cannot talk," I dismissed my illusion and closed my eyes. "Aah!" I screamed as I was whisked into the air. I was on someone's shoulders.
"Please don't scream in my ear," a man said to me.
"W-who are you?" I stuttered, bouncing up and down on this man's shoulder.
"I am the one sent to fetch you, Alice. We are in love," the man said. I shuddered. Love? What a fanciful idea.
"Put! Me! Down!" I screeched, pounding my fists into his back.
"We must go down the hole Alice, you must come with me," the man said as we approached a massive hole in our front yard. I don't want to die. There are things I want to do. People I love.
"I refuse to go with you!" I screamed, wiggling my way out of his arms. He smirked and stepped towards me confidentially as I stepped back. All of the sudden, wind whisked through my ears and hair as I fell down the hole. My arms were thrown out, trying to grab onto something, but nothing was there.
"Alice, you have to let yourself fall. You'll be okay," the man said to me, trying to tug me down as he fell faster than I fell.
"You can't say that! We're falling down a hole! At this speed we'll die!" I protested, yanking my hand out from his. Then I noticed something odd about him, he had rabbit ears.
"I won't let you die, Alice!" He laughed. "Now we're almost there," he said just as I hit a marbled floor. I took a few deep breaths before looking up to see that we were in the middle of a gorgeous courtyard. A fountain was directly to my right, and blood red roses were everywhere. The buildings and statues were all white marble.
"W-where am I?" I breathed, looking at the beautiful surroundings that were everywhere you looked.
"Alice, you are in The Country of Hearts," the man bowed. "And I am the Prime Minister of Heart Castle."
"What's your name?" I demanded.
"Oh, Alice. Always so demanding. I am Peter White."
"I want to go home," I said a bit like a small child.
"You cannot go home. You have to play the game. Now drink this medicine," Peter tried to hand me a small pink vial full of a clear liquid. The cap was a small heart and beautifully transcribed into it was the word "Begin".
"Why would I drink this? You are so obviously a deviant!"
"Oh Alice. I knew it would be difficult. I just wish it didn't have to be," Peter said pitifully before tipping the vial back into his mouth. He then grabbed my face and pressed his lips to mine, pushing the liquid into my mouth. I tried to push him off but he made sure every drop of medicine was in my mouth and I was forced to swallow before pushing away.
"You-you-"
"Goodbye, Alice. We'll meet again soon," Peter waved his hand and walked through the doorway.
"What am I going to do?" I put my head in my knees and picked up the vial. I figured that I may as well keep it and get going. I had to find a way out of here.