-Chapter 10-

I creep around the corner as the melody intrigues me. It's far beyond my bedtime, but I can't help but to come and listen to him play the piano.

I tip-toe to the door and peek in, smiling when I notice it's my dad playing the piano again. He makes it look so simple and easy. It's as if the piano bends its tune just for him. I can hear him humming along with the melody. I've heard the song played so many times, but never once out of this house. It must be one his own compositions.

I lean in more so I can watch him. He's sitting tall and strong, feet tapping the una corda, sosenuto, and sustain pedals, and fingers flying across the black and white keys. The classic black piano almost looks happy to be played by such a wonderful master, holding my dad's composition book firmly on the stand. The book itself is old and ragged but everything I've seen him play out of that book was its own masterpiece.

My footing slips and I fall from leaning in too far in. The music stops abruptly as my dad turns around and sees me sprawled on the floor giving him a sheepish look. He comes over and picks me up.

"Now what are you doing up so late, my Alice?" he questions.

"I was listening to daddy playing the piano…"

"Shouldn't you be in bed?"

"Yes but daddy!" I whine, "Teach me, teach me!"

"You should be in bed, come on."

"No daddy! Please teach me!"

"Alright, but if mommy catches me, I'm blaming you." He chuckles as he carries me over to the piano and sets me next to him.

"Repeat after me, alright?" I nod eagerly. He hits a few keys with his left hand and a few with his right. I repeat on a higher octave.

"That was very good! How about this?" He plays a more complex rhythm then the last. I repeat it exactly. This goes on for hours as we play and laugh.

I smile at the memory of my dad. I didn't even know he played piano. Or remembered? Gah, this memory thing is becoming a nuisance. I shake my head when I hear some muffled conversation going on downstairs. I descend the stairs quietly, carefully not to make too much noise. That's when I take notice of the March Hare talking to Reggie. I bite my lip as I look Reggie up and down. I hadn't even realized he taken off his vest and unbuttoned a few of the tux buttons. His hair seemed to fall in perfect place, eyes bright and curious, and his soft lips played a smile as he listened to the March Hare intently. The March Hare looked…. Well… exactly like he did at the tea party… dream… thingy. He takes notice of me and smiles, almost seductively, running a hand through his hair. That's when the swirls on his hips caught my curiosity.

"What are those? Tattoos?" I blurt out without thinking. Reggie sees me and raises an eyebrow as the March Hare's smile widens.

"Oh, hello Alice. I did not know Reggie brought you home with him." He gives Reggie a knowing smile before looking back at me. He comes over to me, his eyes racking over my body, "The dress looks wonderful on you, Alice. Made by Reggie I presume?" I simply nod as I walk over to the couch, the March Hare sitting next to me, "Oh and about the tattoos, I do not know. They simply interested me and I got them, but they are not the only tattoos I have." I smile, quickly intrigued.

"You have more? May I see?" He chuckles a bit, leading me over to the couch he was sitting at before.

"Mighty curious, aren't you? No wonder Reggie has always been fond of you." Reggie gives him a glare as the March Hare winks at me.

"I didn't know there was a problem with curiosity." I reply, slightly offended.

"Oh there's not! It's quite the opposite."

"Meaning?"

"It's very attractive." The March Hare all but purrs, running a finger along my jaw line. Reggie coughs rather loudly and the March Hare laughs, putting his hands in the air in surrender, "Anyways, I haven't properly introduced myself! I'm Thackery Earwicket, but you my dear may call me Ears." He smiles widely at me and I smile back.

"How fitting." Ears begins to pull his shirt off and my eyes widen a little.

"What on bloody earth do you think your doing Ears?!" Reggie bursts, glaring at Ears.

"I'm fulfilling her request Reggie."

"And what might that be?!"

"To see my tattoos you crazy baboon!" Reggie blushes and stutters an 'oh'. Ears finishes pulling off shirt and might I add, he doesn't look bad shirtless. How come everyone here is so attractive? Reggie rolls his eyes and gets up.

"I'm going to go make some tea." Reggie mumbles as he scurries off to the kitchen.

"He's just jealous that I have the sexiest body in WONDERLAND!" Ears comments loudly. We both laugh as we hear Reggie yell something about him being the sexiest in Wonderland. I hope I get to find out.

"Anyways back to what I was doing." He turned so his back was facing me, showing me a nice sized tattoo of half a tea cup. No, I don't mean a tea cup half filled, I mean a full cup of tea, with half the tea cup. Above it, it said 'Half a Cup of Tea Please'. I smiled at the irony.

"That's cute."

"As are you." He looks back at me, smiling as he noticed me blushing. He suddenly leans over and sniffs up my jaw line, his lips close to my neck.

"W-what are you doing?" I stutter, giggling a little.

He whispers in my ear, "I'm showing you that Reggie likes you. He'll get jealous and outraged seeing me this close to you."

"He will not."

"Will too, I bet you a half a cup of tea he will."

"You're on." I turn and watch Reggie come in. He runs over to Ears and tugs him away from me.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?!" Ears chuckles.

"I won the bet; you owe me half a cup a tea."

I smirk, "Damn you Ears." Reggie gives us a confused look.

"You just proved you were jealous Reggie. It looks like somebody likes you Alice." Ears teases playfully.

"Don't be ridiculous Ears, everyone in Wonderland adores her." Ears smiles and chuckles more as Reggie realizes what he said and mumbles about getting the tea.

"…Does everyone really… adore me?" I ask, shocked.

"Sweetie, you're the only earth girl ever to come here and back. We love the company." Ears smiles, "Anyways, I wasn't done. He moves closer so I can see the one on his chest where his heart is. It a pretty blue butterfly.

"That's so cute. Why there though?"

"Abbi owns my heart. And he's a butterfly." He smiles just talking about him. It's obvious the two are in love.

"You're…. you're gay?" I question, slightly surprised. Why would he be flirting with me so much if he's gay?

"No silly, bisexual. But I'm completely in love with Abbi. So I guess in a way I'm gay. We're secretly engaged." I smile.

"Congratulations! You guys seem to fit each other. Well, from what I know…" Reggie comes back and hands me an empty tea cup and Ears one too.

"Ah-hem" Reggie rolls his eyes as he gives Ears a half a tea cup instead and filling it. It somehow manages to stay filled, despite the cup only being a half circle. Ears smiles graciously.

"Thank you Reggie." Reggie turns to me.

"Would you like some more tea?"

"Um... Reggie, I haven't had any so I couldn't have taken more." I say, raising an eyebrow.

"Alice, I think you mean you can't take less." Ears interjects, a smile playing along his lips.

"Yes, you can always take more than nothing." I look between them. Now they're starting to confuse me.

"Ah… Wha-?" I am completely confused. We all chuckle as we enjoy our little tea party in Reggie's living room. I think I could really get use to Wonderland.

Questions were shooting around the room like dodge balls in a tournament. I was barely making them all out. It must be big news to learn I've been, apparently, living with the Red Queen for the passed 9 years. But they all seem determined to get to the bottom of this. I don't know my passed history with all of these people, but I must've meant a lot to each and every one of them to have them be so worried about me. It feels…so different from my ordinary life, but I'm beginning to like it. Maybe I am meant to be here after all.

Anyways, the entire living room was covered with people. Abbi and Ears are sharing the love seat, and Dormouse's boyfriend is sitting in one of the chairs, with herself on the chair's armrest. Reggie had still not come back from his errands so I'm waiting by the door for him, hoping he comes soon. I feel so out of place with all these new people. Just then, the door opens and a group of people come in. I look over to see two twins with dark reddish hair and bright blue eyes. The one on the left is wearing a grey tank top, black cut-off shorts with a studded belt and gun, followed by some grey suspenders hanging down, and finished with some grey high-tops. The boy on the right was wearing the exact same uniform. Both their eyes widen before the one of the left pipes up.

"You must be Alice…" Left-boy said in awe.

"Yes, I'm Alice. And you are..?" I question.

"Oh! I am Dee." Left-boy replies, "And he's Dum." Dum gives a small wave. I raise an eyebrow. That's an interesting name for a boy.

"It's nice to meet you… again." I laugh as the twins look between each other.

"Wow, you really don't remember anything…" the boys laugh and smile, "But that's okay, we were pretty young when you left, so we don't remember much about you either." Dum pipes in, "But we have heard lots of stories about you through the years from everyone."

"Dee, Dum! You made it!" says the white rabbit, coming over and hugging Dee.

"Nivens! We missed you! It's been so long." Dum replies, when it's his chance to get a hug.

"How's work been?" Dormouse comes up, hugging the boys.

"It's been okay, Mally. The Red Queen has been very insistent lately; I can see why now though." Dee says, referring to me.

"How'd you guys even sneak out in the first place?" Abbi adds, coming into the crowded space of the hallway. The boys look at each other, smiling wickedly, before Dum replies, "We had some help!" and pointing behind me.

I turn around and practically jump out of my skin as a huge smile comes into my view. I look up and see some grey eyes staring down at me, a few strands of teal hair brushing against my forehead. Oh god, not him again.

"Well hello Aliceee." the figure drags out the last syllable, half hissing it. His tail swishes against my thigh, sending shivers through me, "I like your outfit… very sexy." I roll my eyes as Mally clears her throat, getting the kitty's attention.

"I'm sorry; I didn't see you guys there! I just got lost for a moment." He purrs in delight to everyone, but makes no move to unoccupy the space in front of me.

"Yeah, lost in her eyes." Ears smiles as he makes his way over to the Cheshire cat, "I've missed you Chessur." Ears twitches a bit, smiling before being engulfed in a huge hug. Chessur looks to have grown a lot taller. The last encounter I had with him he was only a foot taller than me, now he's practically towering over me, and everyone else at that matter. He even looks like he's scrawnier too; really lean and around 7 foot tall, almost like you stretched the poor thing.

Once Ears lets go, Chessur makes his way through the crowd, over to Abbi, where he crotches down a bit, hugging him and whispering something in his ear. Abbi smiles hugely and mumbles something back. It was probably something about the engagement, considering how close Ears and Chessur seem.

It's amazing to see the friendships and relationships everyone has with one another. Like Chessur and Ears. They seem to have a close friendship, which results in Chessur respecting Abbi because Abbi is Ears's fiancé. Or how Chessur seems like the older brother to Dee and Dum, rescuing and helping them out.

Chessur makes his way over to Mally, who he only uses her as a leaning post. She crosses her arms and pouts, making everyone laugh. Then he goes over to Nivens and gives him a hug that picks him up off the floor, making him squirm. Chessur finally settles down, putting his arms around Dee and Dum.

"Thanks to me, I got these two squirts out from of their horrid job!" He rustles their hair, "Where's Reggie?" he says looking around at all of us.

Ears pipes up, stating that he's out on errands, but should be back soon.

"He might need some help. I'll go look for him while you guys start figuring this shit out. Alice, do you want to come?" he looks right at me, piercing eyes and small smile, holding a hand out to me.

I raise an eyebrow, "And what makes you think I'll be more useful out looking for Reggie rather than helping figure stuff out here. I'll know more about my past few years than anyone else in this room."

In turn, he makes a puppy dog face and whines, "But you promised you'd hang out with me tonight." I did promise him that much. I sigh and grab his hand. There's no appeasing the selfish cat. My reaction earns me his famous wide-smile. He pulls me to him, pressing me against his chest as he barely manages to open the door in the crowded hallway. He turns back and flashes his rugged smile, "We'll be back in a little bit." He pushes me out the door before much protest can be made. He tugs at my hand and pulls me into the forest.

"We'll just start by checking the common roads, he shouldn't be too hard to find." He smiles more at me.

"We aren't really going to go look for him, are we?" I look over at him and he smiles sheepishly.

"I wanted some time with you by myself."

"You snuck into my room every night, while I was changing might I add, to make sure I was okay. Is that not enough alone time for you?"

"I was checking on you for your safety. You were living next to the Red Knight, the Red Queen's highest servant. Not to mention you were actually housed with the Red Queen without even knowing." Unfortunately, he has a point. I've been living under the enemy's watchful eye for over 9 years now. But how could the Red Knight and Red Queen both be here and there at the same time? Did they use the mini fridge portal too or do they have another special way to get to Wonderland?

My thoughts are interrupted as Chessur stands in front of me, pushing me up against the tree, "What are you doing?!" I hiss, squirming under him. He has his hands on either side of my head, leaning down close to me. My heart immediately skips a beat. Up this close, I can see the scars all along his chest. There seems to be an infinite amount. I wonder where he got them all.

"I've missed you, Aliceee." He purrs as he leans in closer, his face now in my view. His grey eyes shine with something I can't quite put my finger on. It's not quite lust, but it's far from any other look I've ever gotten.

"Chessur, get off of me." I mutter, giving him a soft push.

He sighs, "You don't remember much of anything, do you?" I shake my head; words seeming to fail me, yet again. Damn these wonderland men!

"What was our friendship like before?"

"I don't know if you'd call it a friendship…" He mumbles seductively.

My eyes widen, "What do you mean?"

"If you remembered, you'd be all over me." His eyes stare intensely into mine. I know I should push him away, but all efforts to move are in idle. He slowly leans in more, brushing his lips gently against mine. Shit, shit, shit! Is all that my mind has time to think before he moves in for a kiss. My eyes flutter closed and I began to kiss back, moving a hand up to his neck, not letting him pull away. I feel him starting to smile; one of his arms rests on the tree above my head while the other moves down to my hip. Tingles run from my toes all the way up my back as…

"Shh Alice… No one is here, we're fine." The teenage kitty whispers as he tugs on my hand gently.

"I don't know kitty… We shouldn't be out so late… The white queen will be mad…" My voice is barely audible and cracking a lot. His smile grows more, happiness dancing through his eyes.

"That's the fun of it, the risk. If you don't take risks, Alice, you won't be living life to its fullest, and we don't want to not fulfill life, right?" I give a reluctant and slow nod. He drags me through the trees, scanning the forest closely. I soon grow worrisome because I still haven't quite mastered it myself. He takes sharp lefts and rights, zigzagging around trees and mushrooms. Not long after, it becomes a massive blur and if it weren't for him, I'd be utter lost. He finally slows down at a very tall tree.

"Oh! You always sit on this branch." I smile as I realize it's 'his spot', the very same place where I first met him when he rudely confused me and left me completely lost.

"Yes", He smiles more, flashing his ear to ear grin, "But I'm going to show you something far better than just my watch spot." He picks me up and helps me onto the first branch. "Sorry, that first one is always a doosy." He climbs up into the tree next to me with ease, "Now place your hand on that branch and your foot there." He directs to her, pointing to the indicated spots.

"I know what I'm doing! I've climbed a tree before!" I hiss at him, giving him a deadly glare. I've never found climbing to be a very difficult task and I doubt this tree is any different.

"I'm sure you have Alice, but if you don't do exactly what I say, you'll fall. This tree is really tricky to climb. Trust me, I've fallen many times myself. Why do you think I'm always so scratched up?" I sigh, reluctantly following his instructions, one step at a time. The climbing continues for quite awhile, but it becomes fun as we laugh at each other's silly jokes and blush as I stumble and trip up every so often. Luckily, he's there to guide me. I'd never admit to it, but this tree is difficult to climb.

I finally realize we've been climbing awhile and look down, seeing we're at least 30 feet off the ground. Oh dear god! I cling to the branch I'm on for dear life, unable to move, "Kitty…"

"Oh dear; don't go looking down, Alice! Just focus on your footing, we're almost there." He says, pointing again. I take a deep breath before continuing up. We make it to a short rope ladder, "Keep going! It's right there." He points up to a big wooden panel where the ladder stops. I sigh and make my way up the short rest of the way and push it open, crawling up onto some squeaky, but fairly stable wooden planks. The space is no bigger than a king-size bed, with a big window on one side, showing the vast world of wonderland, and on the other, a pile of pillows and blankets.

"You live in this tree?" I say, astonished by the sight in front of me. It doesn't seem like much, but I guess I would consider it homey in time.

"Y-yes… I didn't want to tell you before… I was worried you'd think I'm some idiot for not living in a real house, but I thought you'd enjoy the view." The Cheshire cat seems to actually be blushing, completely showing his vulnerable side. It was a strange sight, considering he always seems so confident in himself, but I like it. It's evidence that he trusts me and that I'm important to him.

"I think it's amazing, kitty… You must be so brave living here all alone…"I hug him tightly.

"R-really?" He looks down at me, flashing a hopeful smile.

"Really." I look back up at him and smile widely. Then something gleams in his eyes.

"I love you Alice…" He whispers intensely, not once wavering or stuttering. He leans in closer to me.

"I love you too kitty…" My breathing quickens as he picks me up, kissing me almost desperately. My eyes widen in shock. I'd never done this before. But I quickly learn and kiss back, the movement feeling almost natural with him; almost like two puzzle pieces that fit perfectly together.

oOoOoOo

Long time, no see! I hope you enjoy this chapter! I tried to make it a little longer than usual... I promise I'll try to update more often! And don't forget to give my feedback; I love hearing from you guys!