DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN/HAVE CREATED TIM BURTON'S ALICE IN WONDERLAND CHARACTERS. (read AN first please!)
Alice was suddenly wary of her mother or sister's peering eyes. She carefully turned a 360 and made sure that she wasn't being watched.
"What are you doing?" The hatter gave her a funny look.
"I just remembered that my mother or sister may be watching. I don't want them getting the wrong…" She told him in a bit of a hushed voice. It was inevitably too late. Her mother had finally spotted where her daughter had been swept off to.
"Well, you two have certainly spent a lot of time together." Her voice was knowing and insinuated at something Alice would rather not think about. The Mad Hatter was either completely unaware of her mother's underlying tones or simply didn't care.
"You have a very interesting daughter." He happily replied. She smiled at him.
"Why thank you, Mr…?"
"Hatter, just call me hatter." He told her cheerfully.
"But why just 'hatter'?" Her mother confusedly asked. The Mad Hatter grinned.
"I very much love my profession." He proudly proclaimed. Alice glanced nervously at her mother's reaction, and to her surprise, she seemed content.
"Well, that's an excellent business, Mr. Hatter. You know, my dear Alice is in need of a new hat." She told him. Alice inwardly thought up a few nasty thoughts about her mother's behavior. Nevertheless, the hatter clapped his hands together in joy.
"I'd love to take up that offer! I'd do anything for Alice!" His slightly foolish grin spread across his face. Alice had to keep herself from nearly tackling the Mad Hatter and telling him to stop. Her mother raised her eyebrows and glanced over at her daughter with a little smile perched on her face. Alice hesitated.
"Oh, Mother. It's, um…well…not what you think! I promise!" She desperately tried to get the awkward thought out of her mother's system. Her mother waved a hand, as she spoke.
"Nonsense, Alice. This kind man has offered to make you a hat! Do you know each other very well?" She questioned her. The long, blonde haired girl began twisting her hands together in embarrassment and distress all over again.
"Oh, yes! Alice and I go very far back! I'm…er surprised to see her here!" The Mad Hatter cut in. Alice shot him a look. Her mother kept beaming though.
"Well, I'll leave you two young people alone then." She went off rather quickly, thinking hopefully that her daughter had finally met a person of the other gender that wasn't completely turned down by her. As soon as her mother's back was turned, Alice smacked him on the arm. The 'victim' winced in over-exaggerated pain.
"Alice! What was that for?" He complained, lower lip sticking out in a bit of a pout. She rolled her eyes in exasperation.
"My mother's a very…uh…she just jumps to conclusions very quickly. I'd rather not give her any ideas." Alice awkwardly tried to phrase her ideas together. The hatter scoffed in reply to this.
"What are you talking about? What conclusions? You're not making any sense, Alice." He told her matter-of-factly. Alice sighed at the hopeless cause and tried to leave it be for the moment. The Red Queen's voice suddenly boomed loudly over everyone else's,
"I would like to start the ballroom dancing!" All the heads in the crowd turned slowly towards her. The Red Queen hesitated and added,
"Please…?" Her 'mother', really Lillian's mother, patted her arm.
"Yes, dear of course!" Alice could sense the slight fear in Lillian's mother's voice. Perhaps the Red Queen and Lillian were more alike than she thought…
"Why would the White Queen allow the Red Queen back after her banishment?" She asked the Mad Hatter, confused. He raised a pointer finger,
"Ah, excellent question, Alice. And here's the reason. You see, we needed to find someone to…uh 'possess' this Lillian character while we were here, so we wouldn't have any hassle getting in…and well, the White Queen actually felt a little bad leaving her sister there, so they made the deal that if she could behave, she could come." The hatter told her. Alice nodded thoughtfully,
"Yes, but then where's the Knave?" The bright orange haired man rolled his fluorescent, lime-green eyes,
"Who would take care of Wonderland while we were gone?"
"You trust him?" She questioned their motives. He shrugged,
"Who else were we going to leave behind then?" The Mad Hatter replied. Alice's mouth opened slightly in the realization, and she nodded once again. All of a sudden, faint huffing and puffing was heard. The Dormouse, who had been delayed due to his small legs, had finally managed to catch up to the rest of the Wonderland characters and poked Alice lightly on the toe of her shoe. He squeaked as loudly as he could.
"Alice! You haven't forgotten about me, have you?" His small face turned up as far as it could to be able to see the normal sized Alice, as he breathed heavily, almost gasping for air. She picked him up and smiled,
"Of course not, Mallymkun. I was about to ask where you were." The White Rabbit, McTwisp, frowned, as he hopped by, searching for the March Hare,
"Why is it that you're always so late, Dormouse?" He commented a little sourly. The Dormouse scowled.
"Maybe it's due to the abandonment, as we were going up the rabbit hole. Thanks for helping out." The mouse snapped back sharply. Alice stepped between the both,
"We'll have none of that now. As the Red…er…Lillian said, we should all go dance. It'll be relaxing." She insisted. They turned away from each other instantly and walked off into the crowd of people. Two, short, on-the-heavy-side boys came toddling over to Alice and the Mad Hatter next. The slightly frazzled blonde stated,
"Goodness, there are still more coming?" She felt a little overwhelmed at having all of these Wonderland creatures approach her, especially with the idea that her watchful mother was constantly staring over at her. Alice was normally a quiet girl who kept to herself, so her mother found interest in seeing all of these people talk to her daughter. Maybe she wasn't as reclusive, as she thought she was. Tweedledee stuck out his hand,
"Pleasure to meet you once again, Alice!" Both twins grinned. Tweedledum added,
"Yes, and at such a fine party as well! There are so many hiding places and goodies about!" Next to Alice, the Mad Hatter groaned and rolled his eyes,
"That's all you two think about, isn't it? Food and games." He grinned foolishly, as he spoke. The twins spoke in unison,
"Well, all you think about is tea and…" The Mad Hatter rushed to shut them up and put his hands over their mouths. He glared at them with one of his eyes,
"I think that's quite enough out of you two." His warning tones scaring the both of them. Tweedledee managed to protest,
"Contrarily, we have merely just begun!" Tweedledum shoved Tweedledee, not wanting to upset the Mad Hatter any more than necessary.
"All right, which one of you said that?" The Mad Hatter growled at the twins. Tweedledee pointed at Tweedledum, and Tweedledum pointed at Tweedledee,
"He did it!" The both shouted accusatorily. The Mad Hatter frowned, and Alice laughed light-heartedly in the background. She gently took the Mad Hatter's hands off of the Tweedles' mouths and patted them both on their bald heads.
"Behave now." She told them a little firmly. They both smiled,
"Yes, Alice!" They chorused together. As they scurried off, the hatter and Alice heard them saying,
"Well, at least Alice is kind."
"Oh yes, you'd figure someone would find out that being nice is the only way to get things…"
"Instead of being grumpy."
"Precisely!" Their voices faded away, as they traveled further and further into the crowds. The Mad Hatter shook his head and placed his face into one hand. Alice giggled. Absolem, the caterpillar, had reached the two once again, and called out,
"They both are a funny bunch, aren't they?" He commented thoughtfully on the twins. Alice nodded,
"Yes, they are." She replied. The Mad Hatter huffed,
"Real funny…" He muttered under his breath. The blue-dressed girl next to him shot him a look. The mad man stuck out his tongue and crossed his eyes at her with his arms folded in front of his torso. Alice moved back a step in surprise and offense. Her eyebrows scrunched themselves in anger over her glassy eyes. She crossed her arms and turned away. The Mad Hatter bit his lip in worry that she was upset, but then she turned around. Her hands stuck on the sides of her head, wiggling her fingers, and tongue out. The Mad Hatter's jaw dropped in Alice's immaturity. He and Absolem looked at each other for a few seconds before bursting out in laughter. Alice, too, joined in merriment and clutched her sides because of so much laughter. This caught the White Queen's attention. She made a face but managed to straighten it out when she arrived at Alice's side.
"What ever is so funny?" She questioned the three. The Mad Hatter wiped his eye, as he spoke,
"The Tweedles…hee hee, and then I…and then she…and then, ha, ha, ha!" His hat fell off his head, as he trembled with laughter, unable to speak. Alice strongly patted him on the back, and he began to breathe once again. Between heavy breaths, he chuckled a little but soon suppressed them. The White Queen made another face. Alice shrugged with a small smile on her lips. Absolem spoke,
"Ignore the hatter; he's just being mad…as usual." His tone tried to reassure the White Queen.
"Alright then, don't tell me." She sighed, fixing her hair a little.
"So, are you at least enjoying yourself?" Alice politely questioned her. The White Queen smiled softly.
"It's a very nice party. Thank you for…" She paused unable to think of a way to finish the sentence. The Mad Hatter finished it for her.
"For not really inviting us but technically inviting us with your mind." He was only centimeters away from her face at the end of his sentence to add a supposed suspense. Alice raised an eyebrow and gently pushed on his chest.
"I need to breathe…" She mumbled, hiding a blush for she knew what her mother was probably thinking at this point in time. The Mad Hatter noticed this and cocked his head in his signature manner. Nevertheless, he stepped back. The March Hare hopped by, still trying to keep away from McTwisp in their game of hide-and-seek. His nose twitched in curiosity at the odd tension in the air. He paused right in the middle of the circle of people. His mouth opened wide, as if he was to say something important and then…and then…he sneezed… Everyone looked down at him in confusion. He grinned madly, wiped his nose with a paw and bounced off having settled the mood a little bit. Absolem complained,
"Well, now look what he's done to me! That stupid hare has his gook all over me." He tried wiping his numerous feet off on the grass. Alice carefully picked him up with a handkerchief and wiped him up.
"There you are, good as new…" She blinked.
"Although that was very odd, don't you agree?" The Mad Hatter nodded in agreement to the nineteen-year-old's statement.
"Quite indeed. I have to admit, he can get a little crazier in the head than I at times." The hatter adjusted his hat. The White Queen whispered to Alice,
"And that's extremely hard to beat…" Alice had to cover her mouth to keep herself from falling into the cycle of laughter all over again. Alice mother once again came over to the odd group and interrupted them,
"Alice, why aren't you dancing?" She asked her a little sternly. Alice hesitated
"Well, um, I just had to talk a bit with a few other old friends."
"Yes, that's all very well and good, but I would start to dance now, Alice dear." Her mother impatiently told her. Alice glanced dejectedly at the Wonderland creatures. The Mad Hatter tapped Alice's mother on the shoulder,
"If I may, madam?" His voice was smooth and sounded almost high-class just as with previous cover-up.
"Yes, Mr. Hatter?" The older woman asked.
"May I dance with your daughter?" The sentence hung in the air awkwardly. The White Queen rushed out of the group to keep from making the situation any odder. Alice's eyes widened, and she gave the hatter a look. Her mother merely pursed her lips and said,
"Well, I suppose it could do no harm." She let go of Alice's hand. McTwisp and the March Hare who had been watching in the distance gaped.
"What has he just done?" The March Hare muttered to himself. McTwisp began to stutter,
"But I told him…and now…he wasn't supposed to…what if…?" He pulled on his long, white rabbit ears in distress.
"He's always getting into other peoples' business, isn't he?" Mallymkun sneered. The White Rabbit fanned himself with a paw,
"Oh dear…I certainly hope I don't faint right here…" He heavily breathed. The mouse frowned,
"Ach, you're such a sissy sometimes, you know that?" He poked him with his little pin needle, and that sent the rabbit bouncing off in pain and sickness. The White Queen crouched down next to the two animals,
"Did you all see that? What in the world is he thinking!? He's tinkering with the real world!" She told them in exasperation and worry. Absolem nodded, perched on his grass blade,
"Yes, I know. Quite troubling. However, the good thing is that he's only playing with Alice's life. I'm sure things will even out eventually." He reassured them nonchalantly. McTwisp came back fuming,
"I still don't like the sound of this." He pushed Mallymkun on the arm with a paw in return for the stab of his pin. The Wonderland creatures watched hopelessly from the sidelines, watching the Mad Hatter take Alice by the hand onto the grassy dance floor.
"I just hope he doesn't start his Futterwacken…"
AN: Okay, in this part, there are some things that only people who watched the movie may know (ex: the Futterwacken) No worries, I'll explain a few of them within the next chapter. :) I saw the movie yesterday, and it was really good, so I put in some references from the movie. The visuals are nice, and the characters are just so much fun! The music was enjoyable...and well, the only thing that I can really complain about is the dragging plot line. A little sticky and slow, but it wasn't that big of a deal. ;) See you all later!