Has she said anything about who took her?
She claims she wasn't kidnapped. She says she was exploring this new land of hers.
She must be afraid.
She does scream in her sleep. She has nightmares about an evil queen and a mad man coming for her. The neighbors are beginning to talk. What if an institution tries to claim her.
We are NOT sending our daughter there. We will just have to move into the city. Nobody knows us is in London.
But will a change like that get her to stop speaking this nonsense?
I hope so... perhaps when she is older she will confess to us where she has been. She will stop talking about this world of hers. This... Wonderland.
Present Day
She put the last tray of cupcakes in a box and stored them in the large industrial fridge. Brushing her hands on her white lace apron she walked out into the bakery kitchen and locked the fridge. She was tall, slender, and didn't look over 22 years old. All the other New York City bakeries were closed but she was still burning the midnight oil. She was hard-working and determined for someone her age. Leaning on the fridge door in exhaustion she looked down at her dalmatian sleeping on the kitchen floor. "Well Perdita, are you ready to go home?" The dog raised her head and tilted it, looking at her owner. The young baker took off her apron and brushed the flour from her name tag until it revealed the name "Alexis." She hung the apron on the wall and heard a ring from the bell at the front door. She let out a sigh, "What now?" She walked towards the entrance and coming through the kitchen door shouted, "I'm sorry but the dining room is closed for the da-" She froze seeing who was standing there. A tall man, different than she remembered, but still had the same cunning grin across his face. "You," she said in a whisper. The gentleman approached the counter, "Hello Alice. Long time no see."
"Rump - Rumpelstiltskin."
"I wouldn't have expected you to remember my name. I feel quite honored."
"How could I forget. You're the reason I'm still stuck here."
"Am I though?" He started walking around the small bakery. "I mean, you are the one who decided to go chasing rabbits."
"You didn't tell me I would still be paying for it over a century later!"
"But I did." He looked at her with that sneaky look she knew all too well. She started to feel uncomfortable with him here. She snapped her finger and summoned the dalmatian to her side who let out a low growl when she saw Rumpelstiltskin. He didn't notice the animal and continued, "I said all magic comes at a price! The only way you were going to find your way home was by eating that magical cake."
"And it caused me to never age!"
"And yet you don't look twelve anymore." She didn't answer. But she had noticed that she managed to age ten years in the last century. She always wondered what sort of magic caused that, and she knew this man had all the answers. He recognized the insecurity in her silence and continued, "That cake caused you to grow and shrink so you could find your way through Wonderland. But all magic -"
"Comes at a price I know... get to the point Dark One."
"In order for you to change your size at an unnatural rate, your body had to compensate by taking away from something else natural. In your case, it was your ability to age. You grew unnaturally fast, so now you age -"
"unnaturally slow..." She finished his sentence and slunk back onto the wall as if she had just received a life sentence to prison. The dark one paced through her restaurant and picked up one of the business cards, "So you go by Alexis now? Well I suppose you have to owning a place called, 'Wonderland's Kitchen.' The name Alice would be a bit ironic." He looked at all the small cakes in her shelves. "You certainly keep busy here. What is it, do you think if you eat enough cakes from this world it will counteract the magic from Wonderland?" His mocking comments were the last thing she needed. Her Dalmatian gently arched her back and growled at him again. This time Mr. Gold took notice and scoffed at the dog. "I thought you were a cat person."
"I stopped liking cats after one tried talking to me." Alice narrowed her eyes, straightened herself and stood tall. "Why have you come here? I'm sure it wasn't for a slice of cake."
"No," he smirked, "I would like my order... to go." The smirk on his face made her uncomfortable again. She didn't like the suggestion his comment made. She spoke with a cold tone, her British accent articulating every word, "What do you want from me?"
"I need your help, Alice. You see, just like the little blonde girl from so long ago, I'm trying to get back home. A very powerful magic, keeps me from re-entering my land, so only someone who has traveled through magical lands can help me. You are from this word, so you can let me in from the inside."
"I've no interest in traveling to the Enchanted Forest. Ask someone else."
"This is not the Enchanted Forest." He started approaching her with a determined look in his eye. But there was something else there she noticed. He almost looked... desperate. He spoke calmly enough, but there was a slight tremor in his voice as he continued, "This magical place is a town. Called Storybrooke, Maine."
"Maine?"
"That's right Alice. All you have to do is drive a couple hours and help me get inside. That's all."
"I suppose you are not going to tell me why you were locked out of this land in the first place, huh?" He just smiled and muttered, "Don't forget, curiosity killed the cat."
"Well I won't be your cat this time, Rumpelstiltskin. Ask someone else." Perdita barked and growled as Alice turned to go into the kitchen once more, "Now get out. My dog doesn't like you." As she turned she was met by a tall, slender woman who had sneaked up behind her. "Sorry my darling," her voice was cold like ice, "but I'm afraid I might be the one she's barking at."
"You!" Alice backed away from her pointing a finger at the tall woman. "You are that woman I read about in the papers all those years ago! That devil woman!"
"It's DeVile, Darling. But you can call me Cruella." The dalmatian backed up as well with her back arched but stood in a protective stance in front of Alice who gave a scared look to Rumpelstiltskin. "What is she doing here?"
"Same as I said before. We need help entering Storybrooke. But more importantly, you need something from Storybrooke too."
"What might that be?"
"Oh do tell her, Gold. It's absolutely delicious." Cruella winked at the growling dog. Mr. Gold approached Alice who had been backed into the corner of the backer at this point. "It turns out there is cake that could counteract the magic that keeps you alive Alice. Eating it will remove the magic and you will finally be rid of this world." The offer was so tempting. Alice had been living multiple lives. She traveled from one country to the next, from one name to the next, always leaving when whispers about her appearance started to rise. So often she had been tempted to end it all, but she always had someone needing her. First her parents, then her aging sister, then countless pets that kept her company through the years. But she was still so alone. Never able to get close to anyone because of her curse. "How..." She looks at the floor and mutters, "How do I come by this cake?"
"You have to make it. Clearly that would be hard for you. But it has to be made with an ingredient from Wonderland. And there just so happens to be in Storybrooke, a man that has a variety of items from that world."
"Curiouser and Curiouser... alright Dark One." She extended her hand, "Deal."
Questions for the next chapter.
- Who is the man in Storybrooke with the special ingredient from Wonderland?
- Will Alice/Alexis find someone there to get close too?
- Will she regret helping Gold and Cruella?
