"But I don't want to go among mad people!" She shouted at the cat with his sinister grin. It sent chills down her spine as he stared at her with his large hungry eyes, claws extended, ready to pounce.
"We're all mad here. You're mad, I'm mad." He giggled and his body began to disappear. She screamed as his floating claws came towards her and ripped at her dress. The forest was pressing in tighter and tighter, stealing all the air from her lungs as she was crushed between the trees. The forest gave way to flowers with little fangs instead of their normal pearly teeth. Then it was darkness. There was no air and no escape, no time, too much space and too little. It was all too Wonderland and there was no way out.
"I'm not mad!" She tried to yell, but her voice only rasped.
She was about to give up, her lungs burning and her body ready to give in, when she heard a voice. Somewhere far off but getting closer.
"I'm not mad." She said again, this time her voice carried all the way to the edges of the world and when her eyes fluttered open she was lying in bed at home, the blankets and sheets tangled around her.
It was just another dream. Another Wonderland dream. She had them almost always, ever since she was a little girl. It had been years since Wonderland. Since White Rabbits and March Hares. Since a hatter that would throw her the most glorious tea parties and tell her stories about all of Wonderland's silly holidays.
When she had come back to the 'real' world she had kept the whole thing to herself. As a little girl she wasn't really known for her honesty, she was known for her fanciful stories and her over exaggeration. No one would believe her then. They were even less likely to believe her now.
Alice wasn't naïve or stupid. She knew that if she tried telling someone about Wonderland they'd have her locked up before she could even get to the good part.
Her whole life she had been keeping secrets and locking them away inside her. Locking her real self behind a wall and putting on her best ladylike smile for the rest of the world. After Wonderland this world made even less sense.
For the longest time she was able to forget. She was able to focus on lessons and manners and perhaps she even toyed with the idea of marriage once or twice. But that was before the dreams and her mother's accusations. That was before all of oddities that no one else seemed to notice, before the murder she hadn't committed and it was certainly before that voice started echoing in her mind again.
She threw the covers off of herself and got dressed in something simple and blue, pinning her hair back and tying it with a black ribbon. She strode through the halls to the breakfast table where her mother already sat, face stern, look of disdain put in place like a mask.
"Good morning, Alice. I trust you slept well." Her mother looked at her with superiority and just the slightest bit of fear, enough to make Alice wonder if she were really crazy after all.
"Of course. And I hope you did as well."
"Indeed, are you ready for the trip? In only a few hours I have the feeling you'll be an engaged woman."
Alice just smiled at her mother sweetly, taking a long drink of water as the voice came louder into her mind.
"You're absolutely Alice, I'd know you anywhere."
That ridiculous Mad Hatter was calling her back to Wonderland.
