Hatter rested his head against the cool stone wall, breathing heavily. It had taken him some effort but he'd managed to contort himself enough to get his bound hands in front of him. Several painful and frustrating hours later, his hands and wrists were sore. They were covered in blood and bruises, but they were free of the restraints.
Without much enthusiasm, he tossed the offending metal across the cell. The clatter of chain against stone was hardly satisfying given his current situation and spending the better part of his day in this miserable cell gave him more than enough time to ruminate.
He closed his eyes, wishing he was home with Alice and enjoying pizza and a movie. How sweet it would be if he were back in her world, sitting on her couch, an arm draped around her as she snuggled into his chest. The smell of her hair gently wafting around him and the softness of her warm skin being bested only by the happy feeling he got just from being around her. He missed her terribly. A relief filled him as he realized that it was Alice he missed and not the emotions that he felt from her. Hatter fervently hoped that she was unharmed and would stay that way until he found her.
However that also brought him to his two main problems. Firstly, that something in him was most definitely off. He was starting to feel emotions from others as though they were Oysters… either that or he was going soft in the head. Secondly, Alice needed him and here he was locked up with Jack's noblest of intentions.
A soft chuckle drew his attention to the cell across from him. Hatter saw a man huddled against the bars, his clothing made of paper that was ripped and torn in several places. He looked like he'd been worked over before being brought here. Hatter could only guess that this was the spy that Jack had mentioned.
"Wish I could have managed that…" he murmured. He shook his hands, the jingle of chains signaling that he was referring to his own manacles. Hatter did not reply, so the man in the paper suit went on. "I'm not one for pain, you know."
Hatter continued to ignore him so the man sighed, "So young a child, ought to know which way she's going."
Hatter stood, glaring. "You're the spy that helped kidnapped Alice."
The man hung his head, "I didn't know who she was and, before you can say it, I know that doesn't excuse what I did… but I am beginning to fear that things are getting so much worse." He gestured to the small window of his cell.
Through the opening, Hatter could see the main city of the White Kingdom off in the distance, smoke rising into the air in billowing plumes.
Alice!
*~*~*~*~*
Alice was reclined against a few pillows and, at Daisy's request, recounting the story of how Hatter had rescued her from the casino. She'd already lost count of how many times she'd told it but the young girl still listened with rapt attention, sighing at the parts she thought were particularly romantic.
A click of the door's latch signaled Tiger Lily's return. Alice paused in her storytelling to glance up and noticed that Tiger Lily leaned heavily against the door, locking it and panting slightly. Rose approached her, "How bad is it?"
"It's bad. The battle we feared has begun." Tiger Lily responded.
As though in response to her words, an explosion sounded in the distance followed by shouts of alarm.
Alice stood, watching in mute fascination as the flowers began moving about the room in an orchestrated fashion, hurriedly gathering together a few possessions and tossing them into satchels. Tiger Lily finished first and took Alice by the hand. "We need to go, now."
A loud bang sounded close by as though something heavy had just impacted with the door to the garden. Daisy gave a startled cry before covering her mouth with her hands and backing away slowly. Tiger Lily moved so that Alice was behind her.
"Don't worry, the Unicorn wants us to keep you safe at all costs and no one could do the job better."
The pounding began again and this time the door splintered, flying open. In the doorway was an armored man, a solder. He pulled off his helm and tossed it behind him, his grin was wide and monstrous as he leered at the women.
"Spoils of war…" he chuckled darkly as he approached Rose. She smiled sweetly as he reached a hand towards her. Before he could touch her, Rose had her dagger buried in a chink in his armor just under his arm. She pulled the weapon back, watching with narrowed eyes as he stumbled away from her. Spinning, she swung the blade in a great arc, catching him in the throat.
He went down, his blood spurting all over the flower. The pale, white Rose painted red by the arterial spray. Alice never in her life imagined being afraid of a flower before this moment.
Violet crouched down to examine the would-be attacker. "He's not a Suit. Look at the crest!"
Alice noticed the Lion that adorned the man's tunic.
Tiger Lily frowned. "If he's one of the Lion's men, things are worse than we thought. We need to get her out of here."
Violet peered into the hallway, head moving to look both ways. "It's clear."
Alice was tugged along as the group of them quietly made their escape amidst the sounds of chaos reigning outside. The corridor ended and the women were dashing down a set of stone steps. Alice's priority was to get out of here alive and find Hatter.
*~*~*~*~*
He could hear armored footfalls approaching, dashing up the steps. Hatter backed up against the far wall of his cell. If the Red Knight was coming to finish him off so he wouldn't talk, he'd have to work for it.
Hatter felt relieved as the White Knight ran past his cell. Hatter called out to him, "Charlie!"
A moment later, Charlie ran back to stand on the other side of the bars, smiling. "There you are, Harbinger. Let's get you out of there."
Hatter couldn't contain himself as Charlie fumbled with the ring of keys he held, trying to find the right one to open the cell. "The White Kingdom is burning. What's going on? Is Alice okay?"
"Ah, ha!" Charlie smiled as the lock tumbled with a click, the door swung open. Hatter wasted no time in leaving that dreadful place and the two men started hurriedly down the stairs.
"I don't have any answers. I have sent the Red Knight to survey the situation."
Hatter grabbed Charlie's arm, halting their steps. "Don't know how to tell you this, Charlie, but the Red Knight's not one of yours. He's been working for the Unicorn."
The old knight's eyes were wide with shock. "Are you certain?"
Hatter nodded solemnly. "He told me himself. He's the one who handed Alice over to the Unicorn."
"That traitorous blackguard…" Charlie whispered, his voice dangerously low in his anger at being betrayed by his own pupil. "We'll deal with him in due time. Hmm…Yes, by Damocles, he will be dealt with. The important thing now is to find dear Alice. Now go."
"You're not coming with me?" Hatter asked, any thought that Jack had come to his senses and decided to release him were dashed as he looked at Charlie's slightly guilty expression.
"You have to go. My place is by The Red Prince's side. I will not flee the coming battle… However, I know his Highness. He wants to be a good ruler and sometimes that means setting aside what he wants for himself…but if anything were to happen to her, he would never forgive himself… nor would I."
Hatter clasped Charlie's shoulder, feeling more than hearing the sincerity of the knight's words. That reminded him of his other problem.
"Not sure if I'm the man for the job, Charlie. Something's wrong with me. I'm starting to feel things…emotions from the people around me. I can't control it."
The old knight's mouth opened in silent awe. "Do you speak truly?"
"Yeah…"Hatter said with a bitter laugh, "sure as ferrets are ferrets."
"The vessel…" Charlie murmured, raising his hands as though he would start his silly chanting at any moment.
"The what?" Hatter cut him off in hopes of preventing that very spectacle.
Smiling widely, Charlie gave Hatter a gentle shove towards the exit. "Go and fetch her, lad! When you return, we'll see if the old prophecy will finally come to fruition."
*~*~*~*~*
To Be Continued...
Forgive me the violence in the garden but I was endlessly amused by my own dark version of "painting the roses red"