Let the Flames Begin

Admit the crowds of people that streamed onto the dance floor, Hatter had he chance to dance with the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen. And he wasn't just exsagerating, oh no, she really was quite a site to see. Amongst the very scantily dressed women of Wonderland, Hatter's eyes focused on the girl in a loose glittering gold dress and long white tights, covering all of her skin. Hatter's eyes were transfixed on the colors that bounced off her dress like a mirror from the lights, the way she moved and most of all the way she smelled.

Natalia smelled of pomegranates. She smelled like the sweet exotic fruit that made up the most expensive of all teas. Secretly he wondered is it was her natural scent, or if she smelled like this only because of her shampoo. But at that moment, he could care less as they danced, his mind clouding as he let loose, just like any other 20 year old man would do at a club.

March on the other hand, had plotted his own path in his head as he sat at the booth. He calculated the time they would be on the floor to the moment when Hatter would come back because he was tired, or thirsty, or simply because he was being polite. Hatter was that way, polite and innocent. March loved having Hatter as friend because he was different than Jack, he was different than the suits, and that fit him just fine. March liked his company, but when it came to something he wanted, he would have it, even if Hatter stood in his way.

He had ordered a cup of emotion tea. This emotion tea wasn't for him, oh no, and it wasn't for Hatter, that was for sure, but for Natalia. He had bought a large amount of Excitement and poured it in her teacup, just as the pair came back. Natalia was glowing, and Hatter looked simply escatic. For a mere moment, March felt almost guilty for what he had done. But when he watched Hatter politely touch her arm to help her sit, jealously bubbled within.

"Are you having fun?" March asked, flashing Natalia a smile.

"This is amazing!" she said happily, "Thank you so much for taking me here!"

She wrapped her arms around his neck and he smiled gratefully as he buried his face in her hair. He inhaled happily, the same scent that intoxicated Hatter now intoxicating March. Hatter could only look away.

"Here, I got this for you," March said, motioning to the small glass teacup in front of her. Natalia smiled.

"Thank you March!" she said, jumping up and giving him yet another kiss on the cheek. Hatter clenched his fists and looked out at a scantily clad woman on the dance floor. Natalia took it and drank it down, her pupils doubling in size in an instant.

"Well?" March said, "Do you like it?"

"Whoa," she whispered her eyes widening as she took in the place in a whole new perspective. Her mind clouded with nothing but the adrenaile that now was doubling through her veins. The song that was playing stopped abruptly, starting with a new one, this time, a smile spreading across her face.

"March," she said, pulling on his hand, "Let's dance!"

March smiled widely, knowing that it was setting in. Hatter stared at him, but said nothing, letting them out. Before they even reached the dance floor, Natalia had begun twisting and dancing to the beat. Hatter followed March onto the floor, suddenly realizing that he was no longer having a good time.

And then it got worse. Natalia began to dance, and March positioned himself behind her, dancing awfully close, and awfully scantily to the beat of the song. But Natalia was too hyped up on adrenaile to care about his closeness or the way his hands were running on her skin. To Hatter he couldn't bare it, but to March it was exactly what he wanted.

March had seen the way she looked at Hatter, and he was upset. For the longest time she had looked at him in almost the same way, and he loved it. But since she had met Hatter, she couldn't keep her eyes off him. This bothered March a bit, but March knew that she knew the practical descision. But what he didn't know was her in general. Would she make the practical choice and pick him, or would she pick Hatter? He was simply doing what he had too to keep himself in the game- surely Hatter knew that.

Well Hatter of course had known that, and he hadn't liked that one bit. He hadn't liked it all. Jealously like he's never felt before coursed through his veins, and he was sure that it could rival the power of an oysters jealously, if they could feel jealously at all. Hatter watched them dance, watched as March was completely content with his work, and watched as Natalia was completely oblivious to it all.

Hatter finally found the courage in him and yanked on March's arm. He was ripped away from Natalia, who looked at them only for a moment before dancing. Hatter led March back to the booth.

"I know you put something in her tea," Hatter accused March quickly.

"Why would I do that?" he said, neither confirming nor denying.

"I know you did, I don't know why. You and I both know she's a s stable as a box of rats."

"That's absurd, she's clearly as stable as you and I," March answered.

"Oh, Really?" Replied Hatter sarcastically, "Then tell me, why hasn't she every had emotion tea before? She told me herself she's never had any in her life."

"She hasn't?" March said quickly, his eyes widening. He of course, knew that.

"You mean you didn't know."

"Well," he began.

"You did."

"Yeah."

"And you gave it to her anyway," Hatter stated slowly.

"When you put it that way," March answered, "It sounds worse than it is."

"What if she's an oyster? Hmm, what-"

"She's not an oyster," March answered, "She's been in the scarabs light."

"Well she's obviously not a wonderlander," Hatter said.

"Well what is she?"

"That's a stupid question," Hatter answered, unable to answer it. March knew that.

"All right, well as you can see she's perfectly fi-"

"Do not say fine!" Hatter said, "Her eyes are twice their normal size! She's totally drunk off emotion tea!"

"Okay, well then," March answered stiffly, "Let's get her home, and well figure out what we can do with her then."

Hatter and March turned back to the dance floor, only to find that Natalia and her glittering dress had disappeared off the floor.

"Where'd she go?" Hatter asked slowly.

"The bathroom?" March guessed, raising an eyebrow. Hatter shrugged.

"She'll find us when she's done," March answered nonchalantly. Hatter agreed.

But Natalia had not wandered off to the bathroom, oh no. In fact, she was no longer in the club. She had wandered out the front door and into the city, the cool crisp air filling her lungs with a new form of excitement as she took in the grand place. There was so much she could do here, so many places she could go. As she wandered down the street she turned down an alley, a shining, glittering object catching her eye as she wandered down, deep into the blackness of the night. If there was one thing the wonderlanders couldn't handle it was things that went bump in the night. And now that Natalia was out in the city, freely, things were about to go bump.

Meanwhile, the baffled buffoons Hatter and March sat at the booth. When nearly an hour had passed, both men began to fret, about what happened to her.

"What if she fell in?" Hatter wondered. March scoffed.

"That's ridiculous," he answered.

"Maybe we should go see if she's in there," Hatter said, taking off his hat.

"She'll be out any second, Hatter, just relax."

"It's been over an hour, March," Hatter answered angrily, "What if she's gotten taken."

"Fine, we'll go look."

Well Hatter and March both walked to the bathroom, and looked at the door. They waited hestitantly, when a woman walked out dress in a purple club dress that showed her stomach. She stared at the lingering men.

"Excuse me," Hatter said politely, "Could you tell me if there is a woman in a gold dress and white tights in there?"

"Only me," she winked, smiling at him. Hatter gulped.

"Thank you," Drawled March, tugging on Hatter's arm. They briskly walked away from the door.

"Where is she?" Hatter asked. March drug him up to the bodyguard and quickly demanded if he'd seen Natalia, the Queens daughter, in a gold dress walk by.

The bodyguard, looking very nervous answered that he had seen her walk out nearly and hour and a half ago. This made both men's faces drain with color.

That meant, that somewhere out in Wonderland, Natalia Heart, the joker's daughter, was wandering around, completely unwatched.

A/N

Oh boy, what's going to happen now? What happens when the joker's daughter wanders freely around a city on emotion tea? Oh dear, well who's going find out? You are!

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