Disclaimer: I do not own anything in association with Alice in Wonderland 2010.
This is a short Moment of mine... a Nopointer. Here we go!
It was too bad on his pocketwatch, Hatter thought where he sat on the floor, head down, trying to clam down his breath. The hurts and hits he could take; the kicks, spit and mockery too. He would lose his life here at Salazen Grum in any case; if not beaten to death here in prison, then later beheaded by an axe. Hatter did not welcome this truth, but it was better than Alice being captured, and therefore he could easily withstand anything and keep his tounge still. Unless they took that too, of course.
But it WAS too bad on his pocketwatch! It had just started ticking again and everything...
"Tell me where Alice is!" Stayne roared, saliva spewing out of his mouth. Hatter refused to even look up and was rewarded with a kick in the guts. Hatter kneeled over, wheezing. Where was he? Oh yes, the pocketwatch. It began ticking shortly after Alice's arrival... or rather, shortly after Hatter's confirmation of her arrival. It was a quite important distinction to do (a kick on his legs). From that moment on, Hatter was released from his punishment of being suspended in time and was yet again granted the possibility of a future. Hopefully, the pocket watch had only been a symbol of this and not the cause, because if so, then Hatter's time was already up (stomp on hand).
It really was too bad on his pocket watch! He should have given it a last round of buttering, had he known...He laughed at the thought, giving a handy tool a last buttering. Wouldn't Thackery be thrilled?
At the sight of the beated, starved and all around abused LAUGHING Hatter, Stayne gave up.
"Only the mad can deal with the mad!" he sneered. "I'll take you to the Queen, madman. Let's see if you'll laugh when SHE's done with you!"
While he was forced on his feet and led forward as cattle to the slaughter, Hatter stayed within his own mind. The outer world held a body in pain and he did not care to visit it. His head was perfectly fine, a great place to be in.
Die by the hand of Bluddy Bhag Hid before the war was won? A low price to pay for the greater good. The Frabjous Day was foretold, the old verses agreeing with the image. Only, when the verses where written, nobody knew what an Alice was. It was generally decided that 'Alice' could be a boy as well as anything else, so thus, Alice became a beamish boy. A beamish boy who would take the Vorpal sword and would slay the Jabberwocky, just as she was supposed to.
And everything would be fine.
Yes, Hatter decided. His life was a low price to pay for that scenario.
Hatter knew Stayne had rushed in advance to prepare the Queen, but he hand his guards were still forced to wait a few minutes before entering the foolishly large room. Hatter kept his head down. He needed not to see the birds chained to the chandelairs, forced to fly or die to keep the illuminating candles up. He needed not to see the monkeys being chairs and other furniture. He needed nothing to evoke his madness, because if he kept his clam, maybe...just maybe...he'd get a chance to end at least one life.
Here he was, at the stairs up to Her Cruelness. Hatter kneeled, suddenly forced out of his head by the pain this move evoked. He couldn't dare to look upon the Red Queen just yet, though, so he glanced at the giant next to Bhag Hid and saw Alice.
Alice?
Alice. A worried, giganormous Alice with searching eyes. An Alice dressed in red. An Alice here, not captured, but by the Red Queen's side. What is going on? What is going on? What is...!
"Where is Alice!"
The Red Queen's question clearifies everything in an instant. She doesn't know Alice is Alice! Alice therefore still is their Alice, here to do.. nevermind. In his pocket, Hatter can feel his battered watch start ticking again. Perhaps battered was close enough to buttered; at least for a little while more, Hatter has a future again. He has to, because Alice is here!
Hatter looks up at the tyrant he wanted to kill just seconds ago and answers:
"I've been considering things that begins with the letter 'M'..."
And Hatter successfully manages to insist on Alice being a boy, getting freed from his chains, decoying the Queen into thinking about hats and getting a royal position as a hatter, alive and still able to help Alice. Oh, thank you, good old pocketwatch!