DISCLAIMER: We DO NOT own any of the characters from Disney's "Adventures in Wonderland". I however, do own Alicen Sierra Kimberly Miller and her family and her friends, along with anyone else you don't recognize. I also own the words to "Through Thick and Thin." If anyone would like to use them, please ask my permission first.
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A/N: This story contains the subject of rape and how my own Alice deals with the aftermath. Use good judgment when reading it
"Alice's Secret"
Chapter 12-A Promise Fulfilled
When Alice stepped through her mirror, she found Sammie sitting on her bed, petting Dinah.
The calico had come through the mirror sometime before her mistress and best friend.
Hey sis." Alice greeted halfheartedly.
"Alice! What happened?"
Sammie sprung off the bed when she saw her sister come through the mirror.
She gasped when she saw Alice's bandaged wrist.
Alice sighed as she gave Sammie a hug.
"It's a long story. I'll explain it to you later."
Sammie nodded. She knew her older sister would keep her promise.
"All right. I need to talk to Gran. Is she home?"
Sammie nodded.
"She's downstairs. Are you okay?"
Sammie was worried about her big sister.
"I will be soon." With that, Alice left in search of her grandmother.
Sammie lingered in the doorway, Dinah meowing at her heels.
"It's okay Dinah, Alice is going to be okay," Sammie said.
Alice shakily walked down the steps and found her Grandmother sitting on the fluffy couch in the living room, reading a magazine.
Alice slowly stepped into the room, and played with her hands. She told herself she could do this, she had to stop Justin from hurting her.
"Gran?" Her voice cracked.
Gran put her magazine down and turned to see her granddaughter standing in the doorway.
"Alice? Darling, what happened?" She asked in concern. She could tell something was wrong right away. "Did someone hurt you?"
Alice took another deep breath.
"I have something to tell you, but it's," Alice paused. "It's a long story, and it's, it's very," She paused again. "It's very hard for me to tell you," She said, the tears burning in her eyes.
"Oh Alice, please tell me, what happened?"
Gran helped her sit down beside her on the couch.
Alice started to play with her necklace as she thought of the best way to tell her grandmother what had happened. She didn't know where to start, but she knew she had to say something soon. She had promised her mother after all.
"I got hurt," Alice started. "Justin hurt me really badly! He wouldn't stop when I told him no. It hurt so much! I was so scared! I thought it was my fault, but Mom told me it wasn't. She said I didn't do anything wrong."
"She's right." Gran affirmed. She knew who Alice meant when she said 'Mom, so there was no confusion there.
"I'm so sorry I didn't tell you sooner! I didn't want to hurt you! I'm really sorry!"
Alice couldn't go on. She burst into tears and buried her face in her hands.
Gran couldn't speak for a long time. She just stared at her granddaughter for what seemed like forever.
What was confusing Gran was why Alice hadn't come to her and who would hurt her beautiful, sweet granddaughter? She had already been through so much with her parents abandoning her and Sammie and now this. Alice didn't need anymore problems.
Alice sat there, tears streaming down her face. She wanted so badly to run back upstairs and go back to Wonderland, but she knew it wasn't possible. At least not until she did what she had to do, which was put Justin where he belonged. She only prayed she had enough strength to keep her promise to her mother…
"Are you ready?" Gran asked, coming into the living room and putting a hand on Alice's shoulder. It had been an hour since Alice had told her grandmother what was going on. After Alice had told Gran what had happened, her grandmother had phoned Mike, a local police officer and long time friend. He was married
To a doctor at the local hospital and he was good friends with the Miller family.
Alice sighed as she took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. She wasn't eager to talk about that night ever again, but she knew she had to do it. She had promised her mother and her brother she would try her best and she was determined to keep that promise.
Alice nodded, trying to fight back the tears that threatened to fall.
It wasn't until they were joined by Sammi two minutes later, did Alice remember her little sister was around.
She didn't want her hearing any of what she was about to tell Mike. It didn't matter that Alice had told Sammie before. Alice didn't want Sammie to hear it again just for the fact that she was going to go into more detail this time. She didn't want her little sister to have nightmares.
"I'll be right back," Alice promised, getting up and taking Sammie's hand. "Come on, Sammie. Let's go. I'm taking you to stay with Hatter and Hare for an hour or two."
Sammie nodded and followed Alice without complaint. She wanted to see Hatter and Hare.
When Alice and Sammie arrived in Wonderland, Alice dropped Sammie off at Hatter and Hare's. She explained to them that she needed to do something important and she didn't want Sammie there with her.
"We'll take good care of her." Hatter promised, sensing Alice was upset about something. "Go get 'em, Alice."
Alice nodded and managed a smile for her friend. She really wanted to stay and avoid the experience altogether, but she knew she couldn't do it.
"Be good, Sammie," Alice said, turning to her little sister. She gave Sammie a hug and promised her she would pick her up in a few hours.
Sammie returned Alice's hug and gave her a kiss.
"I love you, Alice." Sammie said, wrapping her arms around Alice's neck.
"I love you too, sweetie. I'll be back. I promise."
Sammie nodded and followed Hatter into the kitchen where he gave her some cookies and her favorite strawberry and vanilla tea.
Alice took a deep breath as she left Hatter and Hare's house. She really wanted to see her mother, but she knew she had a job to do first…
When Alice stepped through the mirror once again, she stroked Dinah for comfort.
The calico jumped into her mistress's lap.
"Oh Dinah, I don't know what to do!" Alice cried, the tears coming steady and fast. "I know I have to tell Uncle Mike what happened, but I'm scared! What if they don't believe me! What if…" Alice's voice trailed off, giving way to tears once again.
Dinah meowed sympathetically and licked Alice's tears away. She hated it whenever her best friend and mistress was upset or in pain.
Alice sat there for what seemed like hours, but was really only ten minutes when the doorbell rang.
Taking a deep breath, Alice forced herself to leave her sanctuary. She pet Dinah's head one last time before heading downstairs. She knew Dinah would be waiting for her when she was done and it meant a lot to Alice.
When Alice reached the bottom of the stairs, she could hear her grandmother and Mike making small talk in the living room. She followed their voices and sat down across from Mike.
She started playing with the charm on her necklace that the Queen had given her for her eighth birthday. She did this whenever she was nervous. She wanted her mother now more than anything. She wanted the Queen there to let her know that it was going to be okay.
The Queen had been there for her through a lot of hard times and Alice was grateful to her mother for everything she had done for her.
Alice was roused from her thoughts by Mike's voice.
"Hi, sweetie. I know you've been through a hard time these past few weeks. I'm going to try and help you, but you need to tell me what happened, okay? You can take your time, but you need to tell me."
Alice nodded, the fear reflected in her blew-green eyes. She could feel her stomach starting to churn, but she forced herself to stay put. She had to do this. She had promised her mother and brother that she would set things right and she was determined to keep the promise.
Alice took a deep breath and tried to gather her thoughts together before starting to speak. She was shaking and she could feel the tears ready to gush, but there was no turning back now.
"We were going to the movies and he told Kyle to get us seats and our snacks." Alice started, her voice shaking, but at the same time full of determination.
"Who?" Mike pressed. He had to get Alice to say her attacker's name if he was going to be able to put this kid where he belonged.
"Jus…Jus…Justin." Alice said, her voice becoming tearful and full of fear. She closed her eyes, as if doing so would make the visions of that horrible night go away. But it was no use. They invaded her mind, making her shake even harder and the tears stream down her peach colored cheeks like a spring shower.
"It's okay, sweetheart," Gran said, putting an arm around Alice. "It's all right. Mike just wants to help you."
Alice nodded as she let out a sob. All she wanted was to be back home in Wonderland. She wanted her mother. She wanted to be anywhere but here.
"Take your time, honey," Mike encouraged his niece, gently. He could see that this was hard for her and he wanted to do everything he could to make this experience as easy as possible.
Alice nodded and took a deep breath. Her grandmother handed her a glass of water and Alice sipped at it, trying to regain her breath and composure.
Once she had her breathing under control, Alice continued. The more she talked, the stronger she felt. It was like telling her story was in turn making her feel better.
But as she got to the part where Justin raped her, Alice felt the strength leaving her and she could feel herself starting to shake again. She let the tears fall from her eyes like a river cascading over stones.
"He hurt me! I told him to stop, but he…he…he wouldn't listen! I told him to stop, but he didn't listen! I said no! I said no! I said no and I begged him to stop, but he didn't listen! He just kept on hurting me! I told him to stop! I told him to…" Alice's voice trailed off as more tears came.
Mike nodded and reached over to embrace his niece. He wanted to take her pain away, but he knew he couldn't. The only thing that would take it away was time and support from family and friends.
"You did nothing wrong, do you hear me?" Mike asked, wanting to make Alice understand that she hadn't done anything wrong. He didn't want her blaming herself unnecessarily.
"Yes it is!" Alice cried, her tears coming thicker and faster. "It is my fault! I didn't' fight hard enough! I didn't try and get away! It is my fault! It's all my fault!"
"No it's not," Mike insisted, gripping Alice's shoulders firmly. "Alicen Sierra Kimberly Miller, look at me."
Alice did so, knowing it was better to listen when anyone used her full name.
"You DID NOTHING wrong. Do you understand me?"
Alice nodded, but she thought otherwise.
Mike sighed as he gave her a hug before releasing her.
"Thatta girl. All right. I've got everything I need for now. I'll talk to my partner, Abby, and we'll see about setting a trial date."
"Thank you," Gran said, giving Mike a grateful smile.
"It's my pleasure." Mike said, giving Alice a warm smile. "I love both of my nieces and I don't like seeing either of them hurt." With that, Gran showed Mike to the door and he left.
Alice waited a few minutes before making her escape. She had to get out of the house. She ran upstairs and practically threw herself at her mirror. The impact caused her to land on her right wrist as she hit the grass on the other side. Alice cringed as pain shot up her arm. She fought back tears as she
got to her feet and ran back home to the palace. She was home again and that was all that mattered to her at the moment. Little did she know the road to recovery had just begun…
