The Language of Love

Chapter Two: A Revealing Picture

After the Masquerade, I didn't see much of Ilosovic Stayne or of Lady Sullivan. The former was too busy establishing a reputation as a fierce and bloodthirsty assassin, and as for Lady Sullivan, she seemed to have dropped off the face of the Earth. I assumed that Stayne had forgotten all about her, until the day that Alice (or Um, as the Queen first knew her as) arrived in the palace.

I had been sent by Mirana to watch and observe her sister, and though I had tried to wriggle out of the responsibility by declaring once more that I was too old for political intrigue, the White Queen had a way of making even me succumb to her wiles. So, with no little amount of reluctance, I flew over to Salazen Grum, once again becoming invisible.

I watched from atop the Garden wall as Little Alice made her way across the Bloody Moat, and then had to keep from hissing in shock when she ate too much Upelkuchen and grew out of her clothes. Fortunately, Iracebeth was never what one could call an intelligent woman, and she accepted Alice's story quite readily.

Again, I will never understand humans.

Deciding that the best course of action would be to keep an eye on Um/Alice, I slipped into the palace and floated behind the Queen's throne, perfectly at ease. No one would see me, and unless I gave myself away by purring or hissing, no one would hear me either. The perfect camouflage.

I watched as Um gingerly sat down, trying not to hurt the poor monkey holding her stool in place, and sighed inwardly. So far, so good. Now all I had to do was keep myself from scratching the idiot Tweedles. Luckily, Alice realized the danger as well, and was frantically but silently pleading with them to not give her away. Dee figured it out, but Dum…well, there's a reason his name is Dum.

"Is that being?"

"No, no it isn't."

"I'm certain it must be."

"But it isn't, nohow!" Dee elbowed his brother, and Dum fell silent, much to the relief of Alice and me.

A swish of curtains interrupted us, and we turned to see Stayne, looking rather perturbed about something. 'Good for him', I thought. 'He should be perturbed.'

Iracebeth simpered at him, and I had trouble biting back my laughter at the cold look he gave her in return. 'The woman is such a damned fool.' It was then that Stayne noticed Alice.

I sighed, recognizing the look on his face, then blinked in slight surprise and looked closer. The curiosity was there, as well as a slight amount of interest and desire, but it was nothing compared to the heated look he had given Lady Sullivan at the Masquerade a year ago. He was intrigued by 'Um', but that was all. It was a most curious thing, and I decided to investigate further and headed to Stayne's chambers to see if I could discover anything of value to me.

As I floated along the corridor, I couldn't help but overhear a very interesting conversation between two of the Red Court Ladies. Naturally, I decided to listen in. After all, I am a cat, and we are naturally curious. I recognized Ladies Big Ear and Big Nose, and drifted closer, knowing that they were the biggest gossips in all of Underland. Big Nose spoke first.

"He's been acting strange ever since the Masquerade. I heard from the cook who heard from her brother who heard from a friend that Stayne is secretly a spy for the White Queen. Why else would he be spending so much time in his rooms? He's sending off messages."

Big Ears frowned. "I don't think that's it. He asked me about the woman at the Masquerade-you remember the one that sang?"

"Oh, yes. Plain, common thing, wasn't she? What did Stayne ask you?"

"He actually asked me if I knew her name. Imagine it! Me knowing the name of a common guttersnipe like her. But then later on, he came and asked me if I had paper and ink, telling me that the Queen had need of them. I didn't think anything of it."

"Oh come now, you don't think he's holed up in his room drawing pictures?"

"Oh no, not at all. I'm sure he's forgotten that woman completely by now."

The rest of the conversation was of no interest to me, so I continued on to Stayne's room, slipping inside.

The first thing that struck me was how neat and orderly everything was. Sword peg by the door, clothes hung neatly in the closet, and books arranged on the shelf. There was a large desk against the wall. 'If there's anything of interest, it's probably in there.'

I stopped, realizing that in order to search properly I would have to solidify for a bit. But I can be silent even when corporeal, and my hearing is still quite good. I was certain I'd be able to hear Stayne coming and have time to disappear.

I carefully opened a drawer, grinning in triumph at what I saw. It was a large, leather bound notebook. I eased it out of the drawer, opening it to the first page, and my grin widened.

The first page was a crude sketch of Iracebeth, with over large ears and a protruding nose. Stayne had also embellished her head, making it larger and even more grotesque than it already was. As a final insult, he had drawn her with her mouth open in a comical scream.

The next few pages weren't too exciting-sketches from all over Underland, and even one of Salazen Grum at sunset. But it was the fourth page that caught my attention.

It was a black and white drawing of a woman, and I could tell that a great deal of thought and effort had been put into it-the woman seemed almost a living, breathing person. Her eyes were the first thing I noticed-they were deep, almost piercing, and I found myself slightly mesmerized. Stayne had drawn her in a long, flowing gown that showed off her legs and breasts to great affect. I flipped the page, and the woman showed up again, this time in profile, her hands clasped in front of her-and as I flipped through the pages, I couldn't help but notice she appeared on every single one. I was so absorbed that I failed to realize I was no longer alone in the room until I heard a cold voice from behind me.

"What the hell are you doing in my rooms, Cat? More to the point, what the hell are you doing in the Castle?"

I spun around, staring at a very angry Knave of Hearts. He glared at me, arms crossed in front of him. "Well? I'm waiting."

"Oh, it's really none of your concern. I'm sure the Queen doesn't need to know about my being here."

Stayne snorted. "What's to stop me from telling her? I'm her Favorite, after all, and you're just the Cheshire Cat."

I shrugged expressively. "Fine, you can tell her. But then I'd have to tell her what I found, and I don't think she'd look too favorably upon you after that."

Stayne looked at me in curiosity. "Why, what have you found?" He paled as I held up the sketchbook, sinking down into a chair. "Don't tell her, please. I'll let you go, and I won't tell her you were here. Just…don't show her that book."

I blinked. "I didn't realize you valued your life that much."

He smiled softly. "I don't." He took the book from me, gently tracing his drawing with a finger, speaking softly. "I value hers, and if Iracebeth ever saw these…her life would be forfeit."

"Whose life?"

He looked at me in reproach. "Lady Sullivan's, of course. That's who the drawings are of."

I gazed at him. "You've got it bad, Ilosovic. You see the woman for a few hours a year ago, you don't even know her first name, and yet you've filled up an entire book with drawings of her. She's haunting you, isn't she?"

"Yes, still she haunts me, phantom-wise." He sighed, his chin in his hand. "I can't stop thinking about her. My mind fills with thoughts of her, so I draw to try and forget her, but each time I do, my memory sharpens to crystal clarity, and I hear her angel voice in my head. What is wrong with me?"

I laughed. "Nothing, except for the fact that you are head over heels in love. I must say, it's quite refreshing to know that the Knave of Hearts has a heart."

"Very droll, Chessur. But that only makes things worse. As long as the Bluhdy Behg Hid holds power over me, I can't allow myself the luxury of falling in love with another woman, especially one that I might never meet again!"

I chuckled, shaking my head. "You are quite naïve, Knave. I'm afraid that you can't simply choose to fall in love. You either are, or you aren't. And if you are-and I've never seen anyone more Are then you, then it's quite difficult to return to Aren't. But what are you afraid of? As long as the Queen doesn't find out, you're safe-and so is the woman of your dreams. And who knows, you may meet her again someday."

"I doubt it, but thank you for the encouragement anyway. You'd better get out of here while you can."

Later at Marmoreal, and after Alice had arrived bearing the Vorpal Sword-and riding on the Bandersnatch, no less, I happened to overhear a snippet of a conversation between her and Mirana.

"I was quite startled when he pushed me against the wall, but I managed to get away pretty easily, and he didn't follow after me."

"That's odd. From the gossip that filters out of my sister's palace, I'd come to believe that Ilosovic Stayne had no qualms about…courting ladies. I wonder what could have changed him."

I chuckled to myself. If only they knew.

Author's Note: Alannah will be appearing in the next chapter.