Epilogue

When Hatter awoke, it was already dark. Alice was lying next to him, her eyes glistening in the moonlight that shone through open curtains.

"Hey."

"Hey."

"How ya feeling?"

He yawned. "Much better."

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"How did you figure it out?"

"How did I figure what out?"

She propped her head up with her hand. "How did you figure out it wasn't real?"

"I already told you…nothing was quite right…"

"But something must've tipped you off…one little detail that ruined the whole scheme…"

He sighed. He was tired of these games. "What's my name?"

She looked surprised. "What?"

"My real name…I told you once. What is it?" He waited no longer than a moment. "Exactly." Rolling on his back, he addressed the ceiling. "Dr. Dee or Dr. Dum…the woman formerly known as the Queen of Hearts…whoever it is that's tinkering around in my head, I've caught on to your charade…so you better find a new bag of tricks…"

"Hatter."

He opened his eyes. It was night. The curtains were closed, but the light on Alice's side of the bed was on, and the lady herself was leaning over him. "Yeah?"

"You were talking in your sleep."

"Huh."

She lowered herself so she lay next to him, placing her right leg over his as she stroked his bare arm. "Oh no…not again…"

"I think I put an end to it for good…I caught it real early this time."

"Awwww…honey…"

"What's my name? My real one?"

It was her turn to sigh. "I suppose I better start getting used to this…"

"It's the only way I can think of…the only way I can be sure."

She leaned over and whispered in his ear…he smiled. "Thank you." He kissed her. "It's just a precaution…now that I know what it feels like, it's much easier to spot. I wouldn't put it past them to try a couple more times, but the worst should be behind us."

"Was the other me really that bad?" she wondered aloud, changing the direction of the conversation slightly.

"No…" he replied honestly. "She was ok…a bit bratty, a touch spoiled… kinda annoying, but not so bad. The problem was that she wasn't you."

"What finally tipped you off?"

Hatter was 99% sure he was awake, talking to the real Alice…but that wasn't quite enough for him. So he decided to give her a hint. "Jack asked me to tell him where the Great Library was."

It didn't take her long. "And as a member of the Resistance, he should've known that."

"Oh yeah…good thing his mother and her court were unaware of the extent of his rebelliousness…"

"The Great Library," she said, thinking aloud. "With great power comes great responsibility."

"I can't believe you're quoting 'Spider-Man' in the middle of our deep, intellectual discussion…"

She slugged him. "Shut up." She rolled over to turn off the light, then curled up beside him.

"I love you," he said softly holding her close.

"I know," she whispered, letting the words hang over them for a minute before adding, "I love you too."