"If I only could make a deal with God

And get him to swap our places

I'd be running up that road, running up that hill,

running up that building"

Chapter 10

Tarrant smiled softly as he tucked the crocheted blanket closer to the little sleeping form on his loveseat. As Mia had regaled him with her mother's story, the Hatter had watched as her eyelids began to droop. Soon, she could no longer sit upright, but – even as he carried her over to the little couch in his workroom – she still sleepily continued her tale. It wasn't until her head gently hit one of the decorated pillows that her eyelids fluttered close for good, and her breathing slowed in time with her words until all the sound she was making was a soft, light snore.

As he returned to his worktable, Hatter mulled over the story Alice had told Mia. From what he could remember – which was more than most, considering he had memorized nearly every detail of everything simply so he wouldn't forget – it was an almost complete retelling of her first time in Underland. Or, at least, that was as far as Mia had gotten tonight. It made sense to him that Alice would need to break such a long, wonderful tale up! No child as young as the little redhead could stay up long enough for the entire adventure to be explained is such the detail, as it certainly deserved.

Soon, the Hatter was back at his worktable, nimble fingers blurring at the speeds they were moving as they created masterpiece after masterpiece. For yet another time in his life, Tarrant became lost in his work, completely engulfed by both the love of his trade and the intensity of the mercury in the glue he used. And, again, not for the first time – but the first time in a long time – he smiled as he worked. He smiled, content, because the mild madness he felt himself slipping into fooled him enough to believe that maybe – just maybe – Mia was his daughter, that Alice loved him instead of Hamish, and that things were right in the world for what felt like once in his life. Only when he wasn't thinking straight would he allow himself to admit these secret wishes; he wouldn't remember it later, anyway.

"Alice? Alice!" Hamish cried frantically, shaking the young Champion. In the few seconds it took after Alice had collapsed, coughing and choking, for the Englishman and Mirana to register what had happened, Alice's convulsions had stopped altogether. The Queen honestly wasn't sure which had scared her more: the disturbing scene of her closest friend writhing in pain, or the deathly quiet that followed. Without saying anything, Hamish had quickly but gently lifted the fallen young woman and laid her on the couch, and it seemed now that the panic was beginning to set in. "Alice, please, wake up!"

Mirana watched, dainty hand covering her mouth in shock. The moment she tried to speak, her words emerged choppy and cut-off, which caused Hamish to turn his frantic gaze upon her, as well. After carefully clearing her throat to let the redhead know that nothing serious was happening to her as well, she finally managed to say, "I- I think it's best if we alerted Andrea to the situation." Her tone was much calmer than she felt internally, and was thankful that her practice as Queen was paying off at the moment. The people are always soothed when their ruler was collected during times of crisis, whether it be on a large or small scale.

Hamish could only nod mutely, before stiffly standing and all but running from the room toward the guest chambers Andrea was currently staying in. Only now that he was out of sight would the White Queen show her true emotion, and her mask crumbled. She sank down on the floor near where Alice's head lay on the couch and rested a hand on her friend's upper arm , the Champion's unnaturally cold, clammy skin biting her own. "Please, Alice; just hold on."

Clack clack clack clack-

Quick, loud. Noises.

Tarrant shook his head slightly, trying to dispel the sounds from his head. They shouldn't be there. He shouldn't be hearing them. They weren't part of the perfect world. Out, out, OUT. A little voice groaned somewhere to his left, and the Hatter whipped his head around just in time to see a little redheaded girl stretch and yawn. No, she shouldn't be awake now. Not yet. It was still dark outside.

-clack clack clack-

There is was again. In a dazed frenzy, Tarrant sharply twisted around to the door of his workshop just in time to see something – or someone – blur past the cracks where it wasn't closed all the way. Why was someone making so much noise so late? People were trying to sleep! The Hatter decided he would have to bring this up with the Queen tomorrow; surely, she would put an end to this riff-raff and their annoying late-night ventures. He turned back to his work, satisfied with is decision.

It didn't register for several minutes , when heard the noise again – what he now recognized to be footsteps running on the marble floors – that maybe there was a decent reason for the noise this late. Before he had time to think on it any more, however, Mia was grumbling in her sleep again, obviously having been woken up by the racket. His momentary clarity of thought passed, and he was out the door preparing to reprimand the crazed person for waking up the little girl. The minute he stepped into the hall, though, he paused. Hamish was sprinting towards the Main Wing of the Castle, Andrea close behind, and both had panicked looks on their faces.

Upon hearing someone behind them, Andrea faltered and hazarded a look behind her shoulder. "Oh, Tarrant, thank the Lord!" she panted, only stopping her running for a moment. "You 'ave Mia, aye?" The Hatter could only nod mutely, stunned by the developments. "Aye, good. Keep her with you." With that, she was off again.

Suddenly – thanks to years of practice on the Hatter's part – the madman realized that maybe something really was wrong, and he pushed the mercury cloud from his mind as best he could. Something was happening. "Wait!" he called at the last moment, just before the brunette turned a corner. "What has happened?" A sour feeling in the pit of his stomach told him he already had an idea, though. Why else would Alice's keeper be so disheveled?

"Alice collapsed. Keep Mia away," with that, she was off once more, out of sight. Tarrant stood there a moment, trying to decide what he should do. He was worried about Alice, and his first instinct was to follow Andrea and Hamish as fast as he could. He had, however, a little one to take care of, and it had been made clear that she was not wanted at the moment. With a sigh, he turned back around toward his workshop to resume his trade. He would think of something to tell Mia, if Andrea hadn't already.

The minute he faced his door, however, he was met with two sleepily curious emerald eyes. "What's going on?" the little girl asked, yawning.

"Nothing, love," he replied, trying to keep a positive note in his voice.

Mia, awake now, sent him a glare. "You're lying." It wasn't a question; she just knew. And, before Hatter could defend himself, she simply said, "It's mummy, isn't it?"

With another sigh, he crouched down to her eyelevel. "I'm afraid so. I don't know what's happened, but your Aunt Andrea is working with the Queen. They will fix whatever it is that is hurting your mum." Whether he was convincing the little girl or himself, though, was unclear. He pulled her into a tight hug, before standing and carrying her back into the workshop. He wasn't likely to get anymore hats made, though.

What seemed like the next few hours passed in relative quiet for the Hatter. Soon after he had set Mia back on the sofa, she had fallen asleep. After all, Time had passed into the early morning hours. As had been predicted, he had been able to finish any more work due to the worry and fear that clouded his brain. No news must be good news, yes? At least, he hoped so. There were so many unknowns, and all he could do was sit at this worktable and stare at the half-finished hat that seemed to be mocking him, though he was unsure why. And so, the quiet dragged on.

That is, until the screaming started.

The second the shrill, piercing sound ripped through the echoic halls of the White Castle, Tarrant was out of his seat and poised at the door, ready to sprint toward the sound. A quick glance back at the once-more-disturbed Mia told him to stay, and his common sense kicked in. Whatever state Alice was in to be screaming like that… the little girl didn't need to see her mother that way.

Then the noise stopped, and Tarrant began to relax. Silence now could be good or bad, but he preferred to shove any negative thoughts at this point completely out of his mind. The second it started again, though, he could stand it no longer. He had to know. Before the Mia could even open her mouth to complain about being woken up again, the madman had her in his arms and was running down the expansive halls toward the source of the horrible sounds.

"What's happening?" Mia asked, her voice slightly slurred by sleep.

"We're going to see your mother," he replied. "Something's happened, but you must stay quiet, no matter what happens." He felt her nod into his shoulder, and said nothing after that.

The minute he passed in front of the door to the Queen's chambers, he knew he was in the right place. There were White Guards lined up along the walls, keeping members of the White Court out of peeking distance of the large open door. As they approached, the Hatter could see that entering would be a bit of a challenge. As soon as a Castle Piece Guard tried to turn him around, however, he made it clear that he would not be moved. "I have the Champion's daughter." He stated as confidently as he could, resisting the wave of panic-worry-fear-anger-frustration that suddenly threatened to turn his eyes a deep red. That would not help his cause at all.

"Ah'm sorry, sir," the Guard replied, not moving from the Hatter's way. "Ah was given strict orders tha' no one pass into the Queen's chambe's. Especially ye and the Miss." Tarrant felt his fury mounting, and – with it – his sanity slipping once more. Sensing something was, in all likelihood, about to go very wrong, Mia tightened her grip around the madman's neck. The reminder of the little presence seemed to bring a bit of clarity back, but it didn't stop him from using maddened, adrenaline-induced strength to practically shove the stubborn Guard out of his way just enough to slip by. The minute he was in the clear, he ran for the open door and bolted inside.

The Hatter could hear the guards beginning to realize what had happened, and might have almost laughed at how much trouble they were having coming after him and keeping the growing crowds at bay. He might have, if he hadn't been frozen at the sight before him.

There, lying on the pristine white loveseat, face contorted in pain and chest heaving, was Alice. Mirana had laid out much of her potion-making ingredients on the glass coffee-table, and Andrea was carefully applying a wet towel to the blonde's forehead. Tarrant's anger was barely in check – though his vision was going a bit red – at the sight of her in such pain. He finally seemed to snap, though, when he noticed Hamish kneeling at the Champion's head, stroking one of her hands soothingly.

Faster than anyone could even blink, he had deposited a very confused and upset Mia where he had been standing, and sprinted from the room. He could stay there no longer without the Madness taking over and making him do something he would have regretted.

Back to his workshop he ran, knowing that there was a place where he could take out his anger without hurting anyone important. Without hurting anyone but himself.

When Andrea had arrived, there had been no specific job for Hamish to do. So, instead, he had taken on the task of providing comfort for Alice – whether she was aware of it or not – and, consequently, everyone else. At the moment, the brunette was calling out what was needed to servants as she assessed Alice's condition, all while applying a cold compress to the poor woman's forehead to keep down the fever that was rising within her. The White Queen was furiously putting together pain remedies and fever depressants with strange ingredients that Hamish shuddered to think of. Only Andrea seemed to know what was causing Alice's condition, but she was too stressed at the moment to reply anything other than "More water!".

Initially, Hamish had thought that maybe bringing Mia into the room would help. When they had been on the ship, her daughter's presence had seemed to calm Alice down. This fit, however, was much different than the other, and, if Mia could have helped, Andrea would have called for her.

A small cry distracted Hamish from his thoughts, and his attention was turned from the struggling Alice to a little redheaded figure standing, lost, at the door. Maybe Andrea had called for Mia… but then why was no one with her? He stood and began to make his way over to where she was standing, and – when she saw him – she began to run toward him. Tears were beginning to well up in her eyes, and, as soon as she was close enough, she wrapped her arms around his legs. Unsure of what else to do, he awkwardly picked her up and began bringing her closer to where her mother was.

When Mirana realized that Hamish had moved, she looked up frantically for him. When she saw who he was carrying, however, she stopped mixing Wings of a Dragon-Fly into her concoction and rushed over as fast as her skirts would allow. "Oh, my dear," she soothed, seeing how frightened the little girl was. She kept looking back and forth between her mother and Mirana, then to Andrea and back again. "What are you doing here?"

"You mean Andrea didn't request her?" the Englishman was stunned. Had she walked here all by herself, and – even then – how had she gotten past the Guards? The Hatter was supposed to be—oh. Oh.

Mia sniffled, her eyes red from crying. "Mr. Hatter got upset and left me here," she said, her voice quiet and hurt.

Mirana sighed, "This was why I wanted him away. I knew he wouldn't react well to seeing our Champion in such a state… but to leave you was not the wisest move." It seemed to Hamish that she and Tarrant would be having a… discussion about this later. "Come, dear," she took the small girl from him and stood her on the ground, crouching to her eyelevel. "Would you like to stay here with us, or take a late-night walk in the gardens with Lord Ascott?"

Mia's gaze flicked to her mother once more, and then to Andrea, who was now franticly running about looking for something. "The gardens, please," she replied quietly, her eyes becoming wet again as she reached to take Hamish's hand. With a little tug, she started toward the chamber doors, towing the redhead behind her.

After Hamish and Mia were safely out the door and past the Guards, Mirana turned back around to continue her work. What she realized then, however, was that the screaming had stopped. The screaming had stopped. A quick glance at Alice told her that the worst was over, but the ordeal was far from over. She was still unsure what was wrong, and that was a key element to curing her friend. Andrea still seemed to know just what was needed, though, and Mirana decided – now that they were in the eye of the storm, so to speak –that now was as good a time as any to ask her what she knew. Any information could be key to helping more in whatever way she could.

"Andrea," the woman didn't pause , "Andrea!"

The brunette skidded to a halt and turned to face the Queen. "Yes, Yer Majesty?"

With a less-than-regal roll of her eyes, Mirana said, "How many times must I ask you not to address me as such?" And, before Andrea could protest, she continued, "Please, I'm asking you not only as Alice's friend, but as a Healer, as well. Do you know what has happened?"

With a sigh, Andrea sat heavily down into one of the overstuffed chairs, looking older than Mirana had ever seen her. She ran a hand over her eyes and sighed a second time. "Somehow, the poison has been reintroduced into her system."

"The poison?" Mirana vaguely remembered Andrea yelling to Byrant Ipshaw about him giving Alice something on the Ifreann, but she hadn't given it much thought.

"Perhaps it would be best if I began at the beginning…"

Mirana crossed the room to sit in the other chair. "Yes, perhaps that would be best."

"When Ghleo first raided Alice's ship in the Indian Ocean, she fought hard. She was a feisty lass, she was; could have been Irish for all the fire in her blood – I should know, bein' Irish meself. Anyway, when he and his crew were raidin' the Wonder, she would'naet give up. I could hear the fightin' from my cabin, and I also heard somethin' that I had never before heard the Captain say durin' a raid. He told his men tae 'leave this one alive; she'll be of use to us'. I di'naet know at the time who they were talking about, but when they brought the poor girl down to my chamber with a bleedin' hole in her stomach and heard the First Mate yellin' out one of the men for 'damagin' her', I knew she was special. I was a nurse back in Ireland, which is why they brought her tae me in the first place.

"When she woke – she had been unconscious from losin' so much blood – she right pinned me to the wall! Kept yellin' 'where is she? Where is she?' and threatenin' tae kill me, she did. Ipshaw must have heard the noise, 'cause he was at the door in an instant with a disheveled li'l bundle practically bein' dragged behind him. 'She's right here' he said, shovin' li'l Mia to her, 'afore leavin'. Have'naet ever seen someone so relieved. Once I got her convinced I was'naet goin' tae hurt her, I stitched back her wound where she'd messed up me work from all her movin' round, and explained where she was.

"Everythin' was fine for a few weeks after that. Behaved right like a normal prisoner should, and such. Must've started gettin' worried or stir-crazy or somethin', though. Started askin' questions 'bout where we were goin', and such. By then, she and I had become some kind of friends, and – one day – I heard some of the other slaves talkin' 'bout an argument she had had with the Cap'n. I heard she kept yellin' 'the White Queen won't let you' or somethin' like that. I di'naet see her for the rest of the day, but that night she came stumblin' intae my cabin and collapsed right on my floor! Scared poor Mia right oiut of her socks, I'd wager. Woke up a few hours later, she did, but was'naet ever the same again… just kept gettin' worse ever so often.

"I thought maybe she was just sick, and after her first madness-fit, I went to the Cap'n to ask permission to quarantine her or somethin'. Heard arguin' inside the doors tae his chambers, so I stopped to listen. Ipshaw and Ghleo were talkin' about 'givin' her too much' and that 'yer brother's naet goin' tae like this'. Said something 'bout 'running out of it soon', too. After a wee bit more eavesdroppin' on my part, I figured out they had been givin' Alice somethin' tae calm her down. I di'naet know how they had gotten the stuff tae her without her or my knowin', but after a while she stopped havin' real bad fits. Just was real tired and di'naet say much, 'cept for her bedtime stories tae the Lass."

Here, Andrea paused and took a breath. Mirana let the story sink in, and decided that the two men currently locked in the Marmoreal Dungeons deserved worse than to rot in cells for the rest of eternity. But, no, it was against her vows.

There were several parts of this new History that bothered the Queen the most, however. Why did the two scoundrels want Alice? Who were they working for? As she became lost in her thoughts, Andrea stood and returned to Alice's side.

The next few minutes passed in silence as the two women continued to care for their mutual friend. That is, until Hamish came skidding to a halt just inside the doorway once more, slightly panicked and Mia-less. "Mirana, you must come at once."

AN: Sorry this took me so long to write... and that it's a little confusing... and... yeah...

So, YAY! Now we know what happened to Alice! But... OOHH! ANOTHER CLIFF-HANGER! *scary background music*

Reviews are always much appreciated! (: