I glared into the dark sky after Nightmare was done saying those ill-omened words. Was I turning crazy for hearing his voice in my head or was telepathy another one of his freaking powers? This is getting ridiculous, Nightmare.
I sighed deeply to calm myself. Think, Fay. Getting angry doesn't solve anything. Especially not the problems Peter created for me. The memory of him forcing me to drink had me enraged again.
I softly touched my violated lips. Ewe ew ew! I roughly rubbed my lips but I could still feel the warmth of his. That jerk, stealing my first kiss! I always imagined my first kiss being with someone who I truly love and who loves me in return. A little childish and fairytale-ish I admitted, but… I sure as hell didn't want him to kiss me! He even spit afterwards. What the? I WAS THE ONLY ONE THAT WAS ALLOWED TO SPIT. If he hated it so much then why in the world did he do that? Oh right, so I could participate in that Game. That douchebag, that stupid freaking -!
I struggled to cool my head for the second time. What's done was done. I could always think of a method to mess up his life later. I had to think about my course of action now.
Okay, let's reflect first. I'm participating in the Game of Hearts. Involuntarily thanks to a violent bunny man may I add, but that isn't relevant right now. Moreover, Peter said something about me being useful to him. For what? I have no idea. Everything he told me sounded like gibberish. All I knew is that the minute I'm not useful anymore, there will be a bullet between my eyes.
I shivered uncontrollably at the dreadful image. Just now, I was so close to being murdered! And the Game has only begun… Furthermore, if that bunny is this hostile, what about the Hatter rabbit? And I don't even want to know what will happen if I meet that cat. I had a growing suspicion that his boa was once a living animal and… Oh my gosh, how in the blazes am I going to survive Wonderland? I'll be riddled with bullets before I know it!
As fear overtook me I quickly scanned the dark alley. There were no role-holders in sight for now… But what if Peter changed his mind and comes back to slaughter me? Fighting him wasn't an option, I was clearly no match for him. I need to leave. Now.
Problem was… where to? I picked the treacherous vial up from the ground with trembling hands and started to walk in a random direction. It's better to think while I walk in this case. Just keep walking, just keep walking. Get as far away from here as possible. I hummed a nervous tune as I tried to collect my thoughts.
Should I go to the forest? No wait, I told Peter I would go there. But then again, it was an obvious lie so he wouldn't actually expect I would actually go there. Would he? Ah, but what if I meet that cat. I worriedly bit my lower lip. Aaargh! This is a mess. A huge mess. How could anyone last in this world?
I abruptly halted and I swore I could feel a light bulb coming to live in my mind. I turned around and started sprinting to the Tower of Clover.
Of course! Why didn't I think about it earlier! There actually is someone who had endured it all: Alice! She could help me. And I knew she would, she's a kind girl. I grinned widely.
And while I'm there I could ask Nightmare why he has so many ludicrous powers. Perfect.
I picked up my pace as I saw the Tower nearing.
One of the servants bowed apologetically and I felt my shoulders slump down. It turned out all role-holders went out to search for me after I left the meeting. Including Alice. I ran a hand through my hair in defeat. Just my luck.
"Ah, but if you'd like, you could wait for Master Gottschalk in his office. I'm positive that Miss Alice will be with him!" the servant said brightly. Gottschalk? What was he talking about? Who was this- Ooooh wait. He was talking about Nightmare.
Hmmmm… I don't know how I feel about that. I had enough encounters with role-holders for the time being, but… now that I was inside Clover Tower I just couldn't seem to force my feet to the door, knowing that somewhere out there was Peter White with his gun. But who knows, maybe Nightmare had a violent side too… I felt like picking between two evils, but between facing a sickly dream demon who had showed kindness to me before or the chance of facing Peter…
I placed a hand over my racing heart. Relax, Fay, relax. Peter isn't here. And it's not going to be like the confrontation with the rabbit. I had been foolishly off guard then and I won't make the same mistake twice. This time, if Nightmare turns out to be a real demon, I'll make sure to get away if before anything can happen. And think about it. Gray and Nightmare had been nothing but kind to me… so maybe, just maybe this will go smoothly.
And on the bright side, Alice would be there too. Alright.
"Thank you, I'll wait for him then."
"Excellent! Let me escort you, miss Fay."
I inwardly sighed in relief as I followed him. This Tower had way too many hallways for me to remember. And… freaking stairs. I huffed as we rounded the corner and were greeted by another flight of stairs. So mind reading, invading dreams and randomly speaking from what seemed the sky were a piece of cake for Nightmare, but inventing a teleportation system? Nope. I sighed deeply.
I've been to his office before, but why can't I remember the gazillion stairs? What was the-
My face flushed instantly. Right. Gray had carried me. Oh the embarrassment! But wait, did he defy the staircase of doom with me in his arms? I wasn't exactly weightless… Okay, that meant I had no excuse for whining. If I was going to live in a life threatening world with people who were shockingly fit, I might as well start working on my endurance.
Meanwhile the servant showed no sign of exhaustion and chatted happily about this and that. He expressed his worry when he found out I had been missing for the second time.
I raised an eyebrow at that, but kept quiet, listening intently to his sincere words.
I don't… know this man.
I've never met him before. And still he said he was worried about me? Worried? Why? I'm a complete stranger to him. It just didn't add up. But then again, maybe he's the overly worried type of person and I'm just overanalysing things. Or he was being polite. Either way, he couldn't be worried about me, that had to be impossible.
"Well miss Fay, here we are!" He opened the door for me and gestured for me to walk inside. I hesitated a bit, thinking like this could be a trap, before shaking off the feeling. The servant didn't notice my awkwardness – or didn't seem to mind – and asked me if I would like some tea while I waited. I gratefully nodded, happy with any kind of drink after all those stairs.
I sank down on the sofa, rubbing the calves of my legs as soon as the servant disappeared out of sight. Near death experience, running, stairs… Yup, I did a full work-out today.
"So I was just talking to my colleague about how excited I was with the start of a new Game of Hearts!" He said as he handed me a steaming mug minutes later. I nearly dropped it in shock. H-how did he know about the Game?
He must have seen my confusion for he answered my unspoken question.
"When a new Game starts, everyone will notice. But I heard there was a moment of confusion when you voiced your opinion not to play the Game. I'm glad you had a change of heart, Miss Fay."
Confusion? Utter chaos seemed like a more fitting description to me. I carefully placed the warm cup on the table, since it was too hot to hold. On second thought, it would have been better to ask for something cold and refreshing for my dry throat. Oh, well.
"I see. Well actually, I didn't want any of this. There was this guy, Peter I think his name was, who forced me to drink whatever was in this vial." I showed him the small bottle I kept in my pocket and then examined it myself.
Huh? It contained a very tiny drop of a light blue liquid. I thought I drank everything before? But I was positive the stuff inside was colourless the moment I received it at the meeting. Does that mean… it's already filling up?
"The prime minister did? That's… rather odd." He mumbled more to himself than to me. Then he smiled at me in full excitement.
"Anyhow, I'm overjoyed that it has started! Ah, it's a very welcome change in our daily lives you see."
What? Will there be less fighting or something? And why would he care about this Game? I searched my mind for Nightmare's earlier explanation.
"But, all I need to do is interact with role-holders… right?" I was getting more uncertain with each passing second. And the fact the servant was nervously fidgeting didn't ease my mind.
"Is there… something you aren't telling me?" The horror in my voice clearly alarmed the man as he made wild arm movements.
"No, no, no, it's not like that! It's just…" He looked away with what I figured shame.
"It's just that we, the uh faceless, like to… uhm… follow how things proceed."
"Proceed?"
The servant scratched his head in embarrassment and pretended he didn't hear my question, but I kept my gaze steady. This man could be the key to crucial information so I needed to be persisted.
"What do you mean 'how things proceed'?" I repeated slowly.
"Okay, okay! I'll tell. But… I'm not supposed to tell…"
"Tell me what?" I insisted gently when I saw him hesitating. I didn't like being this pushy, but something told me I needed to know this.
"It's just that… among faceless… we like to 'guess' about what will happen to the foreigner, so to say. We don't mean any harm, it's just to make life more interesting." He sounded oddly defensive, but I still had no clue what he meant. It was way too vague.
Seeing the clear question marks in my eyes, the servant sighed in defeat.
"We make bets on who you'll choose to stay with, if you stay that is." He said gravely, like he was confessing his ultimate sin.
"Oh." I said, still not understanding him. Choose to stay with? As in… where I'll be living? Right? He couldn't mean…
"And as a resident of the territory of Clover Tower, I have faith that it will be Master Gottschalk! You'll be the best couple!" He said proudly and nodded, as if to agree with himself.
"C-c-couple?! N-noooo, I don't think so!" Not with him, nor any other role-holder. I might as well marry Death himself if I were to fall in love with any of those dangerous people. The servant looked slightly displeased and I desperately thought of something to say to nuance my outburst.
"In a-any case, no role-holders sees me that way!" I sheepishly smiled like the idea of a relationship with any of them was laughable instead of terrifying.
"Oh, but they will! Falling in love with the foreigner is one of the rules of the Game, Miss Fay!"
"WHAT."
Author: If I would be a faceless, the moment a foreigner comes to Wonderland I would be like TIME FOR SHIPPING :]