"Mary! Mary!"
Margaret hurried through the garden, shoving aside a few branches. Where had she gone now? That child was far too curious for her own good and she often wandered off. Even though it happened almost weekly now, each episode didn't stop Margaret's heart from standing still and butterflies flooding her stomach. Recently the girl had been disappearing into the garden and it seemed almost as though she was...searching for something.
"Mary!" Margaret called again as she rushed past the neatly kept flowerbeds, towards the very edge of the garden, where there was several small trees and bushes. She paused to catch her breath besides a bench, then continued on.
"Mary!"
"I'm right here Mama." The tiny girl disentangles herself from one of the bushes and stood up, her large brown eyes looking up into her mother's. Margaret sighed in relief as she took in her daughter, seeing that she didn't appear to be harmed in anyway. Then she gasped. Mary was absolutely filthy. Her entire red dress was coated in dirt, as well as most of her bare skin. Her brown curls were in disarray and the ribbon had fallen out somewhere.
"Mary! What happened to you?"
The seven year old shrugged. "I fell down a hole and hit my head." Something about that phrase set off alarm bells in Margaret's head, but she couldn't put a finger on what caused them.
"Oh, sweetheart. Are you all right?"
"Uh huh," Mary said, nervously tugging on her dress.
"Well then,"' Margaret composed herself, "Come inside. You need to change. Then we're going to Grandmum's for tea."
The girl smiled and put her small hand in her mother's. "I love tea Mama. Especially at Uncle Tarrant's tea parties."
That caused Margaret to frown. Uncle Tarrant?
"You don't have an Uncle Tarrant, Mary."
The girl shook her head. "Yes, I do Mama."
Margaret was very confused now. "Where does this Uncle Tarrant live?"
"In Underland."
They were almost inside now and Margaret began to move a little faster.
"Come along Mary. We still have to be at Grandmum's at three."
The girl sighed.
"I don't always like tea parties at Grandmum's"
"Why not?"
"They're not exciting. And I have to dress up."
"Why aren't they exciting?"
Mary sighed dramatically. "Nothing ever happens."
Margaret smiled. "What would you like to happen at one of Grandmum's tea parties then?"
Mary stopped, lightly playing with one of her curls as she thought.
"Well, at Uncle Tarrant's tea parties, Thackery is always throwing things, so you have to be careful and duck a lot. And Mally always challenges me to duel over scones." Mary paused, then giggled. "Uncle Tarrant is ever walking across the table. And he'll futterwacken if I ask him to."
"Futterwhat?"
"Futterwacken. It looks like this." Mary dropped Margaret's hand and did a little peculiar dance that again set off alarm bells in Margaret's head.
Mary smiled sweetly and took her mother's hand. They were almost in the house now.
"And Chess teaches me how to smile. He wanted to teach me to disappear, but I can't." She frowned a little. "And Uncle Tarrant is making me my own hat!" An enormous smile graced her face.
"Really?"
"Yes! It's going to look just like Aunt Alice's! Except it'll be purple!"
Mary giggled and skipped the rest of the way inside, not noticing her mother had stopped moving and was standing frozen a few feet from the door.
"I fell down a hole and hit my head."
"I love you Margaret, but this is my life. I'll decide what to do with it."
"You two remind me of some funny boys I met in a dream."
"Oh and one more thing." A blonde haired girl in blue doing a funny dance…
Thoughts spun in Margaret's head. Her sister had mysteriously disappeared years ago. But…could it be….
"Alice?"