Chapter 3: Just Ask Alice
"Wow...if only Riku and Kairi could see this..."
For as long as humans could remember, we have reached out towards the stars. We have gravitated from imagining them as the homes of gods and lost ones to a new frontier to explore. We have studied everything from the twinkling stars in our backyard to the universes beyond ours. Yet we still know very little about the cosmos in which we float like a mote of dust in the morning sky. Few had seen such as sight as the stars around them, yet this was what Dani was looking at now.
"Hey! Watch yourselves!" A high pitched voice squeaked at her.
Sora and Dani looked around, trying to find the source of the complaint.
"Down here!" Another voice, no less high pitched, spoke up.
Somebody threw a rag at Dani's face. She was too stunned to take it off herself, and it fell to the floor with the grace of a ballerina in zero-gravity.
They looked down. At their feet were two chipmunks dressed in cute aprons and scrubbing furiously at the floor with tiny brooms. It would have been a perfect viral video if it weren't real.
"We're doin' our best to keep this place clean!" One squeaked.
"Yeah! At least take off your shoes when you enter the cockpit!" The other added.
"Don't mind them." Donald said, turning the pilot's chair around to face them. "They're Chip and Dale. They're our mechanics."
Another towel was flung at his face. It bounced off his beak as it tumbled.
"The ship is run by squirrels." Nadine said.
"Honestly Naddy, they're chipmunks." Katie said, completely seriously.
Nadine sighed and shook her head. "Yeah, why not."
"Our destination's coming up ahead!" Donald said, barely containing a grumble as he turned back to the wheel.
Dani turned her attention back to the window. A new planet! How many people got to see a new planet up close and personal! And it had sentient life! NASA would love her for this!
A pale pink dot came into view. As they hovered in closer, Dani could make more details out. A checkerboard like design along the surface, castles resembling chess pieces and buildings resembling those of Traverse Town poking out from the ground, and lush forests of plants Dani barely recognized.
It was also really tiny.
"That's the planet?" Nadine asked, skeptically.
"Yuh-huh! It's Wonderland!" Goofy said.
Hanna looked at him. Then back to the planet. Then back at him.
"It's a planet for ants." She concluded.
"Yeah, our minor satellites are bigger than that thing." Nadine said.
"I think its buildings are bigger than that thing." Katie said.
"Are you sure we can all fit on there?" Hanna asked.
"Don't be ridiculous. Of course we—"
That was all the encouragement they needed. Sora rushed out towards the door, and Dani would have joined him if she hadn't seen Donald grab him by the collar up and knew where that was going.
"Don't be too hasty!" The duck said. "This is dangerous work, and all of you need to be on your best behavior."
Dani could have sworn that he paused to give her a look specifically.
"That's right!" Goofy added. "We have to be careful."
He walked out and opened the Gummi Ship doors.
"Look both ways before you leave the ship." Goofy said.
"That's right!" Donald added.
The two knights looked towards the left. They looked towards the right. They took a few steps out of the ship-
"Do you think you should look down first?" Sora asked.
-and plummeted to their untimely doom.
It took a while for Goofy's screams to die out. That's when Dani got worried.
"Do you think they're dead?" She asked.
"Don't know. Do you think we can take the ship down?" Nadine asked.
Slowly, Hanna made her way to the pilot's seat. She sat down with so much care it looked like she was sitting on a puppy. After a few seconds of studying the control panel, she reached out towards the panel with a shaky hand and hit a button.
The windshield wipers turned on.
"Why does the space ship even have wipers?" Nadine asked.
"Space rain?" Katie offered.
"Well, aren't you going to go after then?"
Though the voice was small, it was clear. And it was clear that no one had heard that voice before. Finally, Dani found the source on the dashboard of the ship. A small cricket, dressed impeccably.
"Hi there! I don't think I've introduced myself yet!" The cricket chirped and tipped his hat. "The name's Jiminy, Jiminy Cricket! I was sent by the Queen to record your journey!"
"Is this a petting zoo with wings?" Nadine mumbled.
Jiminy made a face, but didn't say anything else on that.
"Now, aren't you going to go after them?" He asked instead.
"How? We can't just jump down there!" Hanna said.
Jiminy pulled his umbrella up.
"You're joking."
"A little bit. But I do know that they would do the same for you." Jiminy said.
They paused to think.
"You're very compelling, Mr. the Cricket." Katie said.
"I work as a professional Conscious, you know." Jiminy said. He looked very proud of himself.
"Alright, how do you expect us to get down there, then?" Nadine asked.
"Isn't that obvious?" Sora asked.
He jumped.
"I was afraid that was the answer." Hanna said.
Dani followed closely after.
"How long do you think we've been falling?" Nadine asked.
"Dunno. An hour?" Hanna answered. She had long ago turned to one of the books in her bag and leafed through it idly, never quite absorbing the information due to how much the wind blew pages around.
"Feels longer. Kinda stopped being scary."
"FLOOR HO!" Sora called.
They collided with tiled flooring. It took them a minute to get up, more out of the fact that they had forgotten how legs worked than they had seriously injured themselves.
The room they were now in was a kitchen. A bit oddly designed, sure, but otherwise just a regular kitchen. It was easy to find Donald and Goofy, who were staring at a wall with grumpy expressions.
"Took your time." Donald grumbled.
"That was a very long fall." Katie said. "Trying to find a way through that door?"
Nadine looked down closer. That door. But that door was tiny. A mouse probably couldn't fit through it.
"He says he won't let us in." Goofy said.
"You've gendered the door?" Nadine asked.
"Are you certain?" Katie asked.
"You're all too big!" A new voice spoke.
The door was talking. The door. Was talking.
"Alright, I'm not sure what I expected from this trip, but it wasn't this." Nadine sighed.
"Why don't you try the potion on the table?" The door said and yawned. "That girl already has."
All eyes turned to the table, though Donald was the first to reach for it. He unscrewed the cap, and smells filled the air.
"Cherry tart…custard…pinapple…roast turkey…toffee…burned toast…" He muttered. "This is a Shrinking Potion!"
"But is it safe?" Katie asked.
"As safe as any of my magic!"
"You burn things." Hanna pointed out.
"So will you try it or not?" Donald asked.
"Alright." Sora said.
He took the bottle and took a sip.
"That wasn't too ba—"
Sora was gone.
Nadine checked under the table. Sora, now barely over a foot, sat comfortably on the armrest.
It took a long time for the bottle to be passed around, especially since most of them had their suspicions. Nadine was last, trying to make sure that it wasn't just poison. Once they did, they filed through the door.
"ORDER IN THE COURT!"
The booming voice was probably audible through the entire planet. The seven wandered through the garden towards its general direction. The hedges opened up to reveal a rather elaborate court room.
"COURT IS NOW IN SESSION!" The judge called.
"Ooh, a courtroom drama!" Katie whispered.
"This girl definitely did it." The judge said and leaned back into her chair. "And do you know why? BECAUSE I SAID SO!"
"That's completely unfair!" The girl that stood before the court protested. She looked young, not even ten, but dressed and held herself in a way that made her look more formal than she had any business being. "You may be the queen, but that doesn't give you the right to be so...so mean!"
A hush fell over the court. The girl seemed to realize that wasn't the thing she should have said and shrunk back into herself. The Queen was fuming.
"GUILTY! GUILTY AS CHARGED!" The Queen shrieked.
"We have to help her!" Sora said.
"It's none of our business." Donald replied.
"OFF WITH HER HEAD!"
"They'll kill her if we don't!" Dani said.
"And that's not our problem!" Donald said. "Listen, if you're going to be the Key, you need to learn something about world order. Whatever happens on this planet happens. Our concern is to stop the Heartless!"
"FOR THE CRIME OF TRYING TO STEAL MY HEART!"
Donald's eyes widened.
"You were saying?" Hanna asked.
"Wait a minute!" Sora cried as he rushed out from their hiding spot.
"OBJECTION!" Dani shouted as she followed.
"WHO ARE YOU!?" The Queen shouted. "HOW DARE YOU TRY TO INTERFERE WITH MY COURTROOM!"
"But we know who the real culprit is!" Dani said.
"Oh? AND DO YOU HAVE ANY PROOF?"
Dani and Sora looked at each other.
Nadine fought the urge to bury her head in a hand. Instead, she busied herself with trying to memorize all of the court-cases she had seen her mother both present and prepare for. It was clear the Queen wasn't going to listen to the right answer without a good reason to, so Nadine would just have to stall for time.
"Excuse me Your Honor and/or Majesty." Nadine spoke up. "This court case cannot continue any further until the defendant has proper legal consultation, especially if two witnesses to the event want to testify."
"Sure!" Dani said.
The Queen pouted and leaned back in her chair. "Very well."
From above, a human-sized gold birdcage dropped around the defendant, shutting her in.
"COURT IS ADJOURNED FOR A BRIEF RECESS! And if you can't prove that she's innocent, THEN IT'S OFF WITH ALL OF YOUR HEADS!"
The gavel smacked down on the podium, and Nadine felt her shoulder relax.
"Well now you've done it." Donald said as he approached them. "How do you expect to prove her innocent?"
"It shouldn't be too hard." Katie said. "We already know who did it."
"You're right." Goofy said. "All we have to do is find the Heartless."
"Um, excuse me." The girl spoke up. "The Cheshire Cat in the forest may know something if you're looking for evidence. But do be careful. Things really do make no sense around here."
"And we have a lead!" Katie said. "Come on Goofy, let's go be detectives!"
The forest didn't appear to be very big to the untrained eye. The problem was that Sora was the size of a hand when he entered, so everything looked big. Blades of grass rose above him. Mushrooms rose like trees, touching the sky. Sora was pretty sure if he had been his usual height, he could have traverse the entire forest in one step.
"Can't we just tell the Queen the Heartless are responsible?" Sora asked. He swung his arms behind his head.
"We have to consider the world border." Goofy said.
"Order." Donald corrected. "We're already interfering enough as is. Other worlds should be kept as they are."
"Well, that may or may not be true."
The voice came from everywhere and nowhere. Sora spun his head around, trying to find a source, and stopped when he saw a smile floating over a mushroom. The space around the mushroom grew pink and purple, and soon, a creature that greatly resembled a cat had filled the area.
"After all, this is a world of wonder and nonsense. What's the point of keeping a secret?" It asked.
Sora got his wits about him first. "You wouldn't happen to be the Cheshire Cat, would you?"
"Well, the only me is me," The cat said and lazily inspected his claws. "Are you sure the only you is you?"
Sora didn't quite know what it was asking, so he decided to continue anyway. "Alice is in trouble. We're looking for the evidence to clear her, and she said you would be of some help."
"Ah yes." The cat tossed his paw outward. A pink box landed at Sora's feet. "I wouldn't open that just yet if I were you. It would make a great party favor."
Donald grumbled. "What's the big idea!?"
"Why Donald, I'm hurt." The cat said. "After all the time we've spent together, do you really not trust me?"
Sora's eyebrows furrowed together as he tried to figure out what the Cheshire Cat was implying. They had only been talking for a minute!
"Well, I suppose that is your role. But do try to keep in mind if you're not...forgetting anything."
The Cheshire Cat began to fade again. Only his smile remained, and only for a second.
"I wonder what that was about." Goofy said.
"Never mind him." Donald said. "Let's see what's inside."
Sora opened the lid.
"SALE! END OF WONDERLAND SALE! EVERYTHING MUST GO!"
"What's this about?" Hanna asked.
"End of Wonderland sale!" The shopkeeping sheep answered. "Feel free to look to either side of you, Feather."
Hanna couldn't figure out if that was supposed to be an joke or not.
"Why do you think the world's ending?" Dani asked.
"Haven't you heard? The Red King is going to wake up soon!" The sheep said. "When he does, Wonderland is going to go out-bang!-like a candle!"
"What makes you think that?" Hanna said. There was more trepidation in her voice, and she knew that, but this was an important question to have answered.
"You really don't know much, do you Feather? We're all a part of his dream! You, me, the boats, everything!"
Dani and Hanna looked at each other.
"Probably not Heartless." Dani said.
"No, but still worrying." Hanna finished. "Let's see if we can't pass this on to the others once we finished up this court business."
"Well, at least they've accepted their inevitable demise. I'll take a boat, please!"
"Good luck getting that in the Gummi Ship."
Dani bought an egg instead.
"OBJECTION!" Nadine shouted.
"OBJECTION!" The Queen of Hearts shouted back.
"OBJECTION!"
"OBJECTION!"
"OBJECTION!"
This had been going on for the last 5 minutes.
"ORDER IN THE COURT!" The Queen of Hearts bellowed. "If you can't produce the evidence you need in the next three seconds, then IT'S OFF WITH ALL OF YOUR HEADS!"
In the next two seconds, a Heartless ran up. Instinctively, Nadine summoned her Keyblade to knock it away from them. A crystalline, semi-translucent heart floated up into the sky and out of sight.
"There's your evidence, Your Majesty and/or Honor!" Sora exclaimed as he, Goofy and Donald rushed into the court garden. "Don't you see Alice is innocent!"
With a blast of his magic, Donald knocked the cage holding Alice down. It clattered and rattled as it fell, and Nadine bit back her breath. That certainly wasn't safe for a 9 year old girl. The curtain fell off.
Nobody was inside.
"Alice? WHERE IS ALICE?" The Queen asked.
Nadine exchanged a look with Katie. Nobody could have been up there without any of them noticing, not even a Heartless. Alice had made no sound since the trial started, and there was no way she could escape even if she hadn't been holstered up in the air. Where could she have gone?
"YOU!" The Queen pointed towards a set of card soldiers. "Go find Alice! I DON'T CARE HOW JUST DO IT!"
They scurried off, nearly bumping into Dani and Hanna as they did.
"As for the rest of you..." The Queen started "OFF-"
The ground rumbled, and then Nadine realized that something was following the two twins.
It was a Heartless, no doubt. It was very thin and appeared to be made from red and blue blocks, some with faces. Its arms and legs were made of a material that looked almost ribbon-like, albeit crushed, and in its hands it tossed about two juggler's clubs. But its height—even if Nadine had never taken that stupid potion, it would still probably eclipse her. In her current state, if everyone present stood on each other's shoulders, they might not reach the top.
In a few quick movements, Donald and Goofy knocked the Card Soldiers pursuing them out of the way. They fell and flopped to the ground like the paper they were. In that time, however, the Heartless set their sights on them. It tossed one of its juggling clubs into the air, and exhaled jets of fire through the garden before it could fall completely.
Donald's tailfeathers had ignited in the blast, in a sight that would have been hilarious if it also wasn't extremely dangerous. "HOT, HOT HOT!"
"Oh dear." A voice near Nadine's ear gasped. "This really has gotten out of hand hasn't it? I should have brought some snacks."
Nadine snapped her head around until she saw the source. A purple and pink cat was perched near her shoulder. She could feel no weight on her shoulder nor feel any fur or whiskers, and she certainly did not remember inviting him along.
"You!" Sora exclaimed as he tried his best to dodge the incoming attacks. "You tricked us!"
"Why Sora, I'm hurt." The cat said in a way that certainly didn't sound like he was. "Do you really have that little faith in me?"
Sora couldn't respond do to the fact that he was on fire.
"Well, allow me to make up for it." The cat said.
Nadine's Keyblade ran cold. Instinctively, she held it away from herself, and saw a blast of ice collide with Donald's butt, extinguishing the fire.
"A Keyblade Master should be able to use a little bit of magic, right?" The cat asked. "Even if you're not."
Nadine was just about to ask just what he meant by that when the Heartless set its sights on her. She jumped out of the way, bashing away the juggling clubs that followed her. She landed and held her Keyblade out again. Nothing happened.
Donald sent a Cure spell towards Sora and turned his attention towards Nadine. "In order to use magic, you need to concentrate! Accumulate power with you Keyblade! Imagine the enemy freezing!"
I don't want to use magic at all! She thought. The fireballs cascading in her direction made her change her mind. Nadine shifted and held her Keyblade out in front of her. Still, nothing was happening.
"That sounds easy!" Dani said. She jumped in Nadine's way as the Heartless sent its clubs back towards her, and knocked them both back with two icy blasts. Two of the blocks that formed its head popped off.
Sora followed suit, and two more heads of the Heartless knocked off. Katie jumped from her place as Defense to Judge, climbed to the very top of the chair, and jumped again to bash the Heartless's head in with her Keyblade. The last head popped off, and the rest of the body crumbled under it.
Nadine helped Katie back onto her feet after she collided with the ground. Once she was sure she was safe, she set her sights on the cat. "Just what are you?"
"Oh, you can't be too sure here." The cat said casually. "Perhaps I am just a cat, or perhaps I am just a memory. But if it's a name you want, I'm the Cheshire Cat."
"Well, thank you Mr. Cat, for giving us magic." Katie said.
"But of course! The Cheshire Cat always helps those in need!"
"And the benefit of sending a giant Heartless on us?" Dani asked.
"Leveling up." The Cheshire Cat said it so quickly and with so much conviction that Nadine honestly believed it to be true for just a moment.
Nadine quickly realized they were getting nowhere. "Come on guys, let's go look for Alice."
"I'm afraid you're not going to find her here." The Cheshire Cat said. He left Nadine's shoulder to appear on the scorched hedges and stretched. "She's gone."
"Gone?" Sora asked. "What do you mean, gone?"
"Why don't you tell me, if you're so keen on preserving world order?" The cat asked. "Have you found the answer to my question yet, by the way?"
"Huh?"
"The only me is me. Are you sure the only you is you?"
They were back in the kitchen. How were they back in the kitchen? Nadine barely had time to blink…
"Oh. You're back." The door said. He yawned.
Dani noticed something glowing in the knob it used as a mouth. "What is—"
A light shot through Dani's vision. It landed in the keyhole. A satisfying click noise echoed through the kitchen.
"What…was that?" Sora asked, inspecting the tip of his Keyblade.
Author's Note: Anyone who knows me knows that Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is one of my favorite books of all time. It's a cliché answer, I know, but it has less to do with the book itself and more how the story has shaped who I am. The story is never the same; there's always a different interpretation or different things I focus on and it makes me feel like I've grown with this story. But anyway what a weird choice for the first level of Kingdom Hearts. We need to establish the norm for most of the game, so let's throw in the most un-normal things possible. It works for me, because I know of what's going to chance in this adaptation and I can use how crazy Wonderland is to my advantage. The Cheshire Cat knows too, but I'm not sure who told him.