A/N: Hello again, everyone, and welcome back to another chapter of my story! I'll be updating sooner now, so be prepared! xD Anyway, I apologize if any canon characters are OOC in here, or if Regina acts out of order or just plain mary-sue. Well, this time, the author's note is going to be short, since I typed A LOT of words(in my opinion and my dear proofreader's opinion). A warm thanks and dedication for this chapter to OneMerit, who gave me great ideas and, of course, re-read it and corrected my mistakes. Thanks to all those who reviewed, you've given me such inspiration to continue! I hope you'll all look forward to the upcoming chapters, and continue to happily read! Okay, without further ado, here's my second chapter! ;D

Disclaimer: I don't own Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice, but I do own this story and the OC(s).

Enjoy!~

The Person I Was

Chapter Two: Here

"…up. Wake up," a chilly whisper blew in my ears, and I grumbled incoherent words that even I couldn't decipher.

"Mm…" My eyelids fluttered up slowly, and I blinked to clear my vision. I was expecting to see darkness (How can I even see darkness?) as I did fall down a dark hole, but instead was blinded by a brilliant light. As my vision cleared once again, I sat up straight and gazed at my surroundings. Kaleidoscopic colors filled my view, and I couldn't help but be strangely awed. "So pretty," I said, still staring at the various shades of any color possible in the rainbow. I haven't seen a real one in a while, so this was just as close, and just as amazing. I wonder where I am… I remembered being hauled away by a white rabbit man and jumping in a deep, black hole. "Am I dreaming?"

"That's right," the same voice from earlier called, and I whipped around to face a silver-haired man with a gold-traced black eye patch over his right eye. He was wearing an exquisite black coat with the same gold-traced edges, and white straps were circled around either side of his body. A small smile was traced over his closed lips, and his gray eyes stared at me in some sort of amusement. "Hm, that's the first time anyone's commented this place like that," he stated, hovering toward me as if to inspect. I gulped nervously; I wasn't used to being near any males, besides my father and doctors.

"I apologize for making you nervous," he spoke again, traces of a true apologetic tone in his voice. Did he just read my mind? "Yes. By the way, my name is Nightmare Gottschalk, and I am an incubus who creates nightmares, and possibly dreams. Welcome to the Dream World." He abruptly said, and I gasped inaudibly.

My mouth hung open for a few moments before I was able to break out of my stupor. "W-well, it's nice to meet you, Nightmare. Wait…an incubus? Dream World…?" I asked incredulously, wonder present in my eyes. "Uh, nevermind...what exactly is an incubus?

It was his turn to look surprised. Suddenly, he burst out into a light fit of laughter, and I felt I couldn't pry my eyes away from him. I grinned widely in response, actually, and for once, I didn't feel any pain at the edges of my mouth. "Sorry, I really don't know. I've only read fairytales about magical creatures, not including anything about what you are. And I haven't been out for a long time…" I trailed off, the grin growing smaller as my head bowed slightly. I shook it quickly to clear my thoughts, and beamed at Nightmare, a happy expression on my face. Was it fake as well? "Anyway, maybe you can tell me about you being an incubus some other time. I have another question right now."

Nightmare's laughter had already died down, and he stared at me with a raised eyebrow. "What is it?"

"I met a rabbit man near the lake at the hospital I live in, and he took me away from my wheelchair and jumped into a huge hole with me in his arms. Who is he, and where exactly am I? Do you know?"

A small smile played at the tips of Nightmare's lips, and he floated directly in front of me. "So Peter has gone and taken our new foreigner against her will…what an amusing rabbit."

"What?"

"His name is Peter White, and he is a crazy rabbit. You have arrived promptly in Wonderland, but currently, you're passed out. Luckily, you've arrived here, as are the bridges between our worlds. I have a few things need to be explained."

I blinked a couple of times, and a nervous laugh escaped my throat. "Ha, you must be kidding! Wonderland doesn't exist! Or atleast, I don't think it does…anyway, I'm not 'Alice', who's supposed to be there. I must be just dreaming…within another dream! Right! But I have an inclining feeling I should believe you…" I sent a small, disbelieving glare his way, and he chuckled softly. "This is the first dream I've had about Wonderland..."

"Believe what you must, Regina. Perhaps this is a dream, or perhaps—"

"Wow, did you just say my name?" I interrupted him, and his eyes widened at my outburst. "Sorry about that! It's just, I'm happy my name's coming out of someone else's mouth for a change," I felt heat rushing to my cheeks, and I rubbed the back of my head sheepishly. Oops… "Even in a dream, I'm really happy."

"You are a strange human, to think that way," Nightmare stated, hovering around me and staring intently. "You haven't changed at all." He added the last part silently, and I barely heard him, but ignored the comment, whatever it meant.

I smiled again, what was with this guy? He was making me feel like smiling… "I haven't smiled and laughed this much for a long time…" Being constantly visited by only my parents and the hospital people, I couldn't do much. I reached my hand to cover my mouth as I giggled. "You know, you're the second person to tell me I'm strange."

"Who is the other?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but a jolt of pain stabbed my heart, and I dared not speak. "I-I…" I stared at my hands on my lap, and found myself also looking sadly at my unmoving legs. Even in dreams, they didn't move. What a great discovery… "Someone very, very close to me: my twin brother. He was a special person," I told Nightmare, and he continued to stare at me until I said, "I'll tell you the story sometime."

"Ah…I must say, I'm impressed. You have delayed me to the point where I haven't explained a single thing to you about the 'game'."

"What game? I have to play a game now in my dream?"

He chuckled, and came over to ruffle my dark brown hair. "I'll tell you next time we meet. You need to wake up soon."

"Really? That soon? Time sure does pass when you're dreaming within a dream."

"A 'dream', right. It was wonderful meeting you, Regina."

"You too, Nightmare. Incubus or not, you sure are a nice person," I said, and smiled at him calling me by my name again. How long has it been since I've heard it roll off of someone else's tongue? "Is that right? Tell me about incubuses and what not next time."

"And until then, goodbye." Nightmare waved a hand over my eyes, and I felt drowsy instantly. Were all these characters in my dreams so magical?

I yawned tiredly, and my eyelids fell down, the darkness enclosing me again. Maybe I could ask Nightmare for some of that magical power he has to let me fall asleep on my sleepless nights.

But I guess I couldn't in this soon ending dream, right?

"Ugh, my head…" I pushed myself of the ground lazily, and after rubbing my eyes, I regained my sight. Where was I now? "A forest, huh…just the place I wanted to be in. Wait, where's my wheelchair?"

I looked around, unable to spot my chair anywhere. "Oh no, I can't get around without it! Ah, big problem…oh no…" I started patting the ground aimlessly, trying to scatter the pink petals laying on the soft green grass from me. A warm feeling passed through my body, and I blinked at the new sensation. I remembered this place, I was here as a kid, but where exactly was this?

Here…

Here…

"Here?" I repeated, my eyes widening slightly. What was I saying? 'Here' is Wonderland; I couldn't have possibly have been here as a kid.

I shook my head, and my hand bumped something smooth and hard. Definitely not a leaf… "What?" I let my gaze fall on the object, revealing it to be a sky blue bottle, the same color as my irises, with liquid filling it up to the top. The bottle was sealed with a heart-shaped cap, and the feel of the whole bottle was cold. I took a hold of it, and something clicked in my brain. "I've seen this before, but where…?"

Here…

Here…

"Enough!" I shouted, huffing as I regained my composure. What was with these strange images running through my brain? This was going to leave me completely ragged… "Well, might as well keep it…might come in handy, whatever it is…"

I sat there in silence as I gripped the bottle tightly. I wasn't able to walk, how was I going to get anywhere? "I'm in a predicament, aren't I…?"

"Um, excuse me, but why are you talking to yourself, miss?" A voice right behind me inquired, and I almost shot up had it not been the immobility of my legs.

I scooted around and faced the source, only to bump my face into something hard, yet just a bit soft. "Oof!" I got knocked back, and my head came in contact with the ground still covered in leaves. "Ouch…"

"Oh, sorry about that!" The person apologized, and as I pulled myself up, I was staring into their eyes. A beautiful shade of dark red… I looked away, and took in his features. Tawny, messy light brown hair and an intricate red coat traced with black and gray, buckles around either arm. Did all the people in Wonderland have such fancy clothing? I looked down at my slightly dirty hospital dress, and sighed heavily.

"Why don't you get up?" The man unexpectedly asked, tilting his head a bit to the side causing some of his hair to fall into his eyes. He didn't seem to mind much as he bent over a little. "Here, take my hand." He extended his dark gray gloved hand, breaking me out of my thinking trance. I stared disbelievingly at him; how could he expect me to take up his offer? Then again, he didn't exactly know about my problem…

"Thank you for your help, but I can't exactly…walk…" I explained hesitantly, feeling suddenly inclined to tell this stranger. He didn't look like a bad person, in fact, he was kind of cute. I flushed at the thought, and he shot me an even more questioning stare. "S-sorry, I was thinking about something. Really, I can't take up your kind offer, however much I wish I could. I—"

"Hm..." He eyed me suspiciously for some time, looking rather skeptical. His eyes were burning holes through me, and I couldn't help but fidget. He finally spoke up, seeming rather gleeful as he retracted his hand, "Anyway, my name's Ace, the Knight of the Heart Castle, at your service." Ace bowed, his hand sweeping over to the side in a graceful way. I couldn't help but giggle, and that made him look up in slight surprise.

"Your giggle…"

"Hm? Is there something wrong with it?"

"No…it just…brings back some old memories," he answered slightly nonchalantly, looking away off to the side, and he looked somewhat dazed as he scuffed cherry petals off his dark boots. I sat there stunned, furrowing my eyebrows in confusion. Within his tone, I could pull out fragments of remorse, and something else. There must've been something, or someone, that impacted him.

"Well, it's nice to meet you. My name is Regina Uehara," I said, smiling to try to lighten up the mood. Smiling was becoming too common for me. "Unfortunately, I have no great title, unlike you. I'm just a crippled girl for all I know."

"Crippled? You?"

I nodded, and Ace seemed rather taken aback by this. I was surprised by his reaction; didn't he piece together my words from earlier? "It's kind of a long story…"

"I've got time to spare before I report back to my queen. Go for it," he smiled, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I don't think telling a story out here in the forest is a good idea."

"Then how about this!" Suddenly, Ace bent over quickly and pulled me up by my waist, and I gasped at the abrupt action.

"W-wait! What are you doing?"

"Helping you 'get up'," he replied coolly, a happy grin upon his features. What was up with these people picking me up without my consent? Not that I minded much really… Ace set me onto my feet, and I was expecting myself to stumble and drop back to the ground; it didn't exactly go according to plan.

My bare feet touched the warm grass, and I stood still without any problem when Ace released my waist. I gasped as I shakely stepped back to hold my stand, eyes widening ever so. My reaction must've been something, for Ace suddenly blew up with laughter. "Your face, it's priceless! Is it that much of a shock?" He slapped his leg repeatedly for a while, laughter going on. Was it really that funny?

"Don't laugh so much! My legs…they really aren't supposed to move!" I was really shocked at this. For over five years, I've been in a wheelchair, and for the first time…they moved. They actually moved.

"Ah, what a good laugh. I haven't had one in a long time…" He wiped away an almost nonexistent tear from his eye, another one of his cheerful smiles present. He started backing away, and stopped when he was about a few feet away from me. "Go ahead and try to walk over to me!" he called, shuffling his boots in anticipation.

"O-okay…if you say so." I stiffly stuck out a foot, and almost lost my balance. I could hear a small, stifled chuckle erupt from Ace, and sent an unintimidating glare his way. I huffed, and starting reaching my legs out, and before I could register everything, I was walking as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Well, for normal people it was, anyway.

"I'm walking! I'm actually walking!" I exclaimed, a new sensation building up in my chest.

"That's a no-brainer, Regina! Keep going, you're almost there!"

Instead of reaching Ace by walking, though, I jumped forward, startling him as I tackled him. He held his ground, and I wrapped my arms around his waist. "I've never felt so happy! Thank you Ace!" I cheered, grinning widely as I hugged Ace tighter. Then I realized what I was doing, and immediately jumped off, blushing like mad. "I'm sorry about that…I got too carried away…" I apologized, feeling even more heat rise up my neck. Wonderland affected me so much… All these bottled up emotions; were they always there?

"It's fine, as long as—"

Before he could finish his sentence, I started coughing violently, feeling a trembling feeling slide up my spine like a haunting wind. I covered my mouth, and when I pulled it down, my hand starting turning see through. "What's happening?" My voice was lighter, and I felt like gagging.

"Wait, Regina…are you a foreigner?" Ace asked, and something clicked in my head. I remembered hearing Nightmare say something about one. I tried to say something, but words wouldn't leave my mouth, and Ace acted upon that. His gaze fell upon the sky blue bottle in my hand, and he grabbed it without much trouble because it was slipping out of my hold. He uncapped it, and poured the transparent liquid into his mouth, every drop. He suddenly reached for my arm, and pulled me to him, forcing his lips onto mine, and eventually, I could feel a warm tingle ripple through my body as the liquid rushed into my mouth. First I'm dragged into a world where I feel crazy, and then this happens! This sure was a strange dream. I tried prying myself weakly away, being unsuccessful in doing so. A jumble of thoughts were rushing through my brain, but I could only grasp one.

This liquid tasted horrible.

End A/N: Well, it's finally done! How was it? xD Anyway, I hope you all liked it, and R&R if you can~

Happy reading!