Mad World
Chapter 7
The Hatter was confused. No one had ever embraced him in such a way. He was torn between his strange new feelings for Alice and the idea that he was supposed to be watching over her.
So the Hatter's mad response was to panic. He was not prepared for this level of close-ness. So, he took her by the shoulders and moved her back to arm's length.
Alice looked up at him, confused, but allowed herself to be moved. She realized she flustered the poor man and should probably keep some sense of decorum.
"I'm sorry, Hatter. I just wanted to—" she began.
"Good morning, Alice," he said cheerily, as though the awkwardness of the last moment has not happened.
"Good morning, Tarrant," she said, trying out his first name.
She wasn't sure, but she thought she saw a light blush creep through the Hatter's pale skin. But it was gone as quickly as it came. That was the only indication that he had heard her.
"Did you sleep well?"
"Yes," she lied. She had slept horribly, but that wasn't his fault. "I feel so guilty for taking your bed though."
The Hatter's cheery smile only dulled a tad as he contemplated a proper response. He had only recently had a female in his home for the first time (the White Queen last night) and he had most certainly never had a woman in his bed, no matter how innocent the reason. His mind was spinning as he searched for an answer.
"I thought it would be the best place for you, since I only had the one bed and you looked so tired and you asked so politely and I certainly didn't want to offend…"
"Hatter," Alice smiled.
"Thank you, I'm fine," he said hoarsely.
"So, is everyone outside?" Alice asked as she now stared at her feet.
The Hatter, who had also taken to staring down at his shoes, replied, "Yes, yes. The White Queen Mirana brought everyone to check on you."
"They all knew you were coming to see me?"
"Perhaps I should let her majesty explain the situation. I fear I will trip over the words and confuse it that much more," he replied.
"I'm not sure I'm ready to go out there yet. Do they know what happened last night?"
"I have not told them, although, they will probably wish to know. They are a nosy lot, save for the Queen. And I did find Chessur half-evaporated through the door," he said, an angry accent rising in his voice.
"Well, you know what they say 'curiosity killed the cat,'" Alice said, trying to keep the mood calm.
"Curiosity killed a cat?" the Hatter said. "I thought the Queen talked to him about that," he said, looking confused.
"It's just an expression," Alice laughed nervously. "I'm not sure if he actually killed anything."
"That's an odd expression. Curiosity won't like having stories told about it," the Hatter said, much like the way Lady Ascot dismissed Alice's suggestion of painting the white roses red.
"Much of the things in the Uplands are odd, Hatter," Alice said. Perhaps she would choose her words more carefully next time.
Alice suddenly felt more ashamed of her appearance than she had in her entire life. As she looked down, she saw the rips and tears and stains all over her party dress.
"I am a disaster," Alice said.
"You look lovely," the Hatter said before he could stop himself.
"Thank you for your kind words, sir," Alice half-laughed. "But I am entirely aware of my state."
"Of course, where are my manners? I should let you tidy yourself up. Shall I call the Queen to assist you?" the Hatter said.
"Oh, no. Don't bother Queen Mirana. If you'll just point me in the direction of a wash basin, I should be fine to clean myself up," Alice said.
The Hatter found a wash basin and filled it with clean water. He led her to the wash room and shut the door to allow Alice some privacy.
While Alice was cleaning herself up, the Hatter when to his room to find a change of clothes. And while he was changing his own clothes, it occurred to him that Alice might want something else to wear. Of course, he had several dresses that were made for her. But then again, she might be confused to why the garments existed at all.
The Hatter pondered the dilemma thoughtfully. He then decided the embarrassment of a madman meant nothing in comparison to Alice's comfort.
But while the man had been contemplating, Alice had already left the wash room and had gotten very turned around. All of the closed doors in the unfamiliar house were maddening and she picked a door.
To her surprise, she walked into the Hatter's sewing studio. There were hats everywhere. All of the corners of the room were full of hats stacked to the ceiling. She had never seen so many hats in her life. And there were the most beautiful dresses she had ever seen on dress forms around the room.
"You should ask before going into other people's things, ye know," the Hatter's voice said behind her. It was accented heavily and Alice knew if she turned around, his eyes would be glowing gold.
"I know, I—"
"This is my room, not your room. I gave you a room and now you take another," the Hatter said angrily. He began to rant loudly in Outlandish.
"Hatter!" Alice shouted. "I'm sorry!"
The Hatter shook himself.
"I'm fine."
"Hatter, I'm sorry. I'll just head outside for tea. I'm very sorry," she said, running out of the room.
Of course, in the Uplands, Alice's family was in a panic.
Alistair Bruant, thinking himself utterly brilliant, had returned to the Kingsleigh home in his dirty and confused state. This caused a huge commotion in the house and the party came to a halt.
"Mr. Bruant! What happened?" Mrs. Kingsleigh shouted at the man who had black eye and was covered in grass stains.
"That man, that odd-looking man. They're gone!" Alistair shouted, looking like a lunatic himself.
"What are you talking about?" Margret said.
"That man took Alice and disappeared."
"What man took Alice?" Alice's mother asked. "I thought she was with you."
"I'm quite embarrassed to say this, but he came out of nowhere and surprised us. I was easily overtaken because of the shock. I tried to defend Miss Kingsleigh, but he was a madman."
Mrs. Kingsleigh put a comforting hand on Alistair's arm. "I'm sure you did what you could."
Lowell stepped forward. "Do you know what direction they headed in?"
"This is going to sound very strange…they jumped down a rabbit hole and they were gone," Alistair said.
"Jumped down a hole?" Lowell said. "A hole?" He obviously didn't believe him.
"Are you sure she was kidnapped? Perhaps she merely ran away again," Hamish said bitterly.
He had been enjoying the party with everyone else until the outburst from Alistair.
"Hamish!" Lady Ascot shouted. "Don't say things like that," she scolded. She may not like the girl, but she knew it would be a bad for appearances if her son was talking that way.
Hamish rolled his eyes and mumbled an apology.
Mrs. Kingsleigh had collapsed into tears and began to hyperventilate.
"She needs some water!" Margret shouted.
Someone on the other side of the room fetched a glass of water as Lowell and Margret helped Mrs. Kingsleigh into a chair.
"We need to get a search party together and we must inform the authorities," Lord Ascot said.
A/N: Okay, this was the next installment. What did you think? And I promise, I do take all reviews into consideration as I write chapters. I appreciate all reviews, but especially those that are an actual critique. Thank you all!
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