What Alice Found There

Word of Alice's departure reaches the White Queen in a parallel Wonderland. Now Alice and Hatter have been brought back through the Looking-Glass by a terrified Pawn to rescue Wonderland from the inevitable rule of the Red Queen.


Prologue

The White Queen's Dethroning


The Queen rested on the windowsill in her bedroom, overlooking the vast expanse of her beautiful kingdom. It had flourished under her husband's gentle rule. The Madrigal Flowers sang peacefully in their fields, far away from the Ballad Flowers. In between them sat Wonderland's first official township. The White Queen's delicate lips twitched into a smile as she remembered the difficulties of teaching the Wonderlanders to live together.

Beyond her castle lay the Glass Sea, a thin solid sheet of cooled glass covered the pit of molten sand beneath it. The Glass Sea circled her kingdom like a protecting mote.

She reminisced on her years as Queen. She had wandered to Wonderland from another world, one that felt so far away now. When she fell down the rabbit hole that had led her here she was a mere twelve years old, but time went differently in Wonderland. It seemed to travel slowly when going backwards, as it often did, but every so often it would race forward and years would pass in a day. Sometimes a minute was an hour and a day was a second, so no amount of time-keeping was ever held at high importance. The Queen decided that in her world it had been four years but here… well here she had not a clue how long it had been since her rule began.

Her sad eyes found the old silver clock that perched above her bed, a constant reminder of her time drawing to a close. 12:04, she read. And soon it would be 12:03, then 12:02, then 12:01 and then, finally... 12:00. It was March 25th and according to the ancient stories and prophecies and poems and myths- tomorrow, the 24th ended her reign as Queen. In that minute a Pawn burst through her door, shattering her calm.

"I beg your pardon. I am your Queen and you will knock!" Her voice was regal, used to years of being better than everyone else. She rose above the white Pawn, creating a lovely willowy silhouette against the clear light grey sky. His short-snowy beard shivered and his bright blue eyes clouded with fear.

"My dear Queen, please, it is urgent."

"Well do spit it out then." She stood straight and still, her thin white hair cascading around her without its normal luster.

"Alice has left Wonderland." The White Queen's heart stopped and heat rose to her cheeks and ears. Her remaining 3 minutes where spent chasing about the castle giving orders and scribbling instructions on parchment. Until 12:00 came. In the elongated time between 12:01 and 12:00 a red army dotted in white snow had every inch of the castle covered, except for a tiny window to its rear. Out of this tiny window climbed a Pawn. The self-same Pawn who had informed Her Majesty of Alice's departure.

By 1:00 (which arrived about a day later than expected) the entire castle had been gutted. If anything was left it was either life-less or had been driven mad by the brutal attack.

The Queen, who was no longer the Queen, kept her regal chin held high as she was escorted in chains from the castle. Her face was dampened by the occasional tear. The army had slaughtered the White King, and Alice was not on the Eighth Square of Sessa. Her kingdom would crumple under the rule of her sister the Red Queen and, to the best of her knowledge, no one was left to return Alice to the throne.


Author's Note: Just so we're clear… the White/Red Queen/King is not the same White/Red Queen/King in Through the Looking Glass. I've actually never read the book… so it can't be the same character or else I would get them totally mixed up and Lewis Carroll would rise from the grave and steal my breath while I slept. And also, know that this a parallel Wonderland so there may or may not be a Jack, Duchess, or Queen ect. Hatter and Alice will appear in the next chapter so please, review!