Wicked - mischievous or playfully malicious

The atmosphere was swallowed by a relative placidity. Fives figures sat around a long, dining table, its surface tightly packed with teapots, cups, and plates.

Seated at Alice Liddell's right was the Mad Hatter himself, Blood Dupre, savoring the taste of tea on his tongue. At Alice's left was the March Hare, Elliot March, cheerfully chomping down on a decadent slice of a carroty confection.

Yes, everyone and everything seemed superbly content and rendered in an impeccable state of tranquility. Even Alice was blissfully serene, happily drinking her own piping, hot cup.

…Well, maybe not everyone.

Alice glanced to the twin figures seated across from her. Both were uncharacteristically solemn and silent as nibbled on a tiny teacake. Alice couldn't help, but watch them during the tea party. There were moments when they sat completely still, moments when they whispered quietly between themselves, and moments when they stole glances at her.

Their behavior was so odd… just not too long ago they were clambering over to her, wanting nothing more but to be with their beloved onee-san.

'They're acting so strange right now…'

"Alice?" The young foreigner snapped herself out of her musings, turning her head to the side. With a smile, Elliot continued his inquiry. "Alice, are you going to finish your cake?"

Her bright green orbs fell downcast. On her plate, the carrot cake remained pristine and untouched. She had quite enough sugary delights and couldn't eat anymore. The foreigner raised her gaze back to him and shook her head.

Elliot's face lit up, excitedly grabbing Alice's plate and plopping it over his own. "Wow! Thanks, Alice! You're the best!"

The foreigner flushed a light crimson, embarrassed by such reception. "Oh, it's not a big deal. Just enjoy it."

And enjoy it Elliot did, proceeding to ravenously devour the slice. Alice couldn't help herself from smiling, happy to see Elliot was enjoying himself.

"Onee-san?" At the sound of two child voices, Alice turned her head once more. The twin's eyes widened, sparkling underneath the golden light. Their lips were spread into cute, adorable grins as they proclaimed, "We love you, onee-san!"

Alice's heart felt warmed by such innocence. "Aw! I love you guys too!"

She naively hoped that such a response would finally snap the twins out of their sullen daze, perk them back up to the jolly children they were.

...Instead their visages seemed to deflate. All sparkle dulled from their wide orbs, and their lips fell into pouts.

"It's not fair!" whined the twins, intercrossing their arms over their chests.

Alice was genuinely confused, her head tilting slightly to the side. "Huh? What's not fair?"

"It's just not fair!" pouted Dum.

Dee added, "How come onee-san blushes when newbie-hare just asks her for some cake, but she doesn't blush when we tell her we love her?"

The foreigner's eyebrows knitted in confusion. "I wasn't blushing! I know Elliot embarrassed me by thanking me so fervently, but I was not blushing!"

"Yes, you were!"

"W... Well... Even if I was, what can I say? You two are such adorable kids!"

"But we don't wanna be treated like kids! We want onee-san to treat us like men! You'll see. We will prove it to you we are!"

"I'll treat you guys like men!" The twins suddenly felt the back of their shirts rise upwards, lifting their diminutive bodies off the chair. "I'm finally going to make you guys accept your responsibility and actually guard the gates for once."

"Let us go, you stupid rabbit!"

"I'm not a rabbit, dammit!"

The young brunette chuckled as the trio continued to tussle and argue, slowly disappearing from her line of vision.

Despite her good spirits, her mind was overwhelmed with questions. She honestly did care for the two kids. How couldn't she? They were simply too adorable for their own good. She even admitted openly how much she cared for them in front of Elliot and Blood.

What more do they want?

"Never judge a book by its cover." Alice's reverie was shattered by a calm voice. Green eyes blinked, confusedly staring at the Hatter. "I assume an avid reader as yourself heard of that classic quip?"

Alice limply nodded her head, her countenance still perplexed.

"And, as you also know, that idiom simply means do not judge a person's character just by his or her outward appearance."

Alice impatiently said, "Yes, I know that, Blood. I'm not some idiot."

"Do you? You make me wonder sometimes..." Blood casually took a sip of his tea, ignoring the ire emanating from his female companion. "My point is, my innocent, naive, Alice, don't let the twins' current appearances fool you. They are far more wicked than you think."

"Huh? What do you...?"

"Now I should really get back to work. Good day, Alice."

Before Alice could stop him, Blood already stood up and disappeared.

That had left her completely alone, staring down at her own tea as her mind reeled in confusion.

Just what did Blood mean?

XxX

The bathroom was one of those things that never failed to captivate Alice. Even if she wasn't exactly poor back in her world, she never had a bathroom of this magnitude.

Alice released a sigh of ecstasy, settling her toweled body into the steaming waters. It was beautiful paradise in her opinion. It allowed her to forget all her worries, allow it to evaporate like the surrounding steam.

...But there were always some thoughts that even a good bath couldn't wash away.

Don't let the twins' current appearances fool you. They are far more wicked than you think.

Such words still never ceased to baffle her. Of course she knew the Bloody Twins weren't one may consider as ideal children. They were subordinates of a mafia, and their favorite hobbies included anything involving slaughter and blood. She had seen their vast variety of weapons to prove that thought.

To call the twins wicked?

Alice didn't think that was the correct term to describe them.

'And why did Blood call me innocent and naïve?' mentally scowled Alice, sinking deeper into the warm, watery depths. 'I am no such thing...'

Suddenly there were two loud splatters, hot waves crashing onto her unsuspecting face.

"Sorry, onee-san! We didn't mean to make such a big splash!" said Dee and Dum, clutching various water toys in their arms.

Alice shook her head dry and said, "Its okay... what are you guys doing here?"

"We wanted to bathe with onee-san!" the twins spoke in perfect unison, faces wide with smiles. "You don't mind, right?"

She considered their request for only a singular moment before answering them with a sigh. "Why not? You two are already here. I don't mind at all."

Watching Alice relax herself in her place, resting her head on the edge of the bath, the twins' lips contorted into deep grimaces, disappointedly dropping their toys into the water. Bright sapphires soon met with a pair of rubies.

"Plan B?"

His twin brother nodded his head. "Plan B."

Of course, Alice did not hear a word. She was in her own little world, her eyes gently fluttering to a close. The overhead lights created a brilliant red fire underneath her lids, progressing towards darkness the closer she came to unconsciousness.

Suddenly, her eyelids became dark. "Onee-san?"

"Oh, Dee, Dum, do you guys need some..." All words failed her when she slowly opened her eyes. She quickly blinked away the foggy blur, and everything slowly came into focus.
Hovering directly over her were the twins. She was able to ascertain that much. She could remember the shape of their faces, those blue and red eyes.

She just couldn't understand how those adorable twins suddenly grew up - around her age or even older.

"Guys? I... is that you?" asked Alice, her tongue struggling to form coherent syllables.

The one with longer hair and blue eyes said, "Yep! Onee-san, it's me. Dee!"

"And I'm Dum," replied the shorter-haired, red-eyed one. "Doesn't onee-san recognize us?"

"O... Of course I do! It's... It's j... just... h... how...?" Alice lost the ability to speak. All the joints in her jaw weakened as did the muscles in her legs.

Despite the flustered foreigner's stammering, the twins understood. "Ah, don't tell us, onee-san forgot already? This can. Be the first time she saw us like this!"

It took the young foreigner a long moment for herself to recover and for her mind to create a semblance of order. How could she be so forgetful? She should have remembered that the twins weren't children all the time - there were times when they changed their appearances to adults.

"So, onee-san, we would like to ask you a simple question," drawled Dee, his voice sleek like the waters surrounding them.

Dum added, "Would you please hear us out?"

The duo slowly edged towards her, causing the young girl to retrogress and press her back against the edge of the bath. Alice barely felt any air reach her lungs, let alone any capability to respond. She could only nod her head.

A pair of ruby and sapphires sparkled, glinting with a light that sent shivers down her spine.

"Even though we're not children right now..."

Alice's body felt rigid when a hand traced her bare skin and another captured her face.

"Do you still love us?"

Her heart seemed to hammer against her rib cage, pumping blood into her cheeks. She gripped her towel even tighter. Her mouth fell dry, her lips uttering only incoherent sounds rather than words or sentences.

Seeing her lack of a response, they drew even closer, faces hovering just over hers. Only a thin barrier of air kept them apart.

"What's the matter? Don't you love us?"

"Well then. Perhaps we could show you just how much we love our onee-san."

What little space that separated her from the twins was gone when they placed their lips on her skin.

An electricity exploded in her veins, casting a fire along her skin wherever their lips touched. Her heart palpitated noisily against her chest. Her rosy cheeks began to flush an even deeper crimson, reddening when she felt a pair of lips brush against her own, teasing her mouth, tantalizing her senses.

"So how about now?" whispered one of the twins, their warm breath fanning over her ear.

The other added in a hushed voice, "Do you love us now?"

If they were in their normal, child forms, Alice's response would have came quite easily.

For some reason, seeing them like this and being in her current position, she could not even mouth those simple three words.

"I..." The twins slowly raised their gazes and stared at the blossoming flush of her face. Her greens orbs couldn't even bear to look at them. "I... I..."

With their bodies pressed to hers, she could feel a chuckle rip through their abdomen. She fell completely silent, slowly meeting their eyes. A gleam of triumphant flashed in both of their orbs, surprising the red Liddell.

Wrapping their arms gleefully around her, one of the twins proclaimed, "Onee-san is finally blushing!"

"What did we tell you, onee-san? We really are men," the other said proudly.

Alice would have rolled her eyes at the remarks, if it hadn't made her feel even more embarrassed.

"And now to prove just how manly we really are."

As the twins placed a flurry of kisses on her warm skin, their arms holding, trapping her in place, she finally came into to a powerful revelation. Blood was correct. These twins were certainly not as innocent as she led herself to believe.

They were truly wicked.

And she still loved them all the same.

... No matter how merciless their hands were, the fire that sparked within her when their lips touched hers.

All things truly wicked start with an innocence.


A/N Notes: Wicked + smexy older twins = Alice and me drooling up a river. xDDD

I read somewhere that the twins decide to change adults was because Alice doesn't get all blushy blushy when they do stuff to her. If that's true or not, either way the idea inspired me to do this part! -melt-

And here's a sidenote/announcement: I shallest be away for approximately two weeks and shan't be here on . I'll be on… VACATION BABY! xD
When I'm going, I doubt I shall have internet access so, as I said before, I won't be here. I might have time to write, but even that's iffy.
I'll take this off when I come back though!

Thanks for reading~