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Unfortunately for them, Mally and Tarrant were proved correct: The Red Queen was not going to let them reach the Queen's position easily.
There, pacing in front of the pearly gate, was Ilosovich Stayne.
They had been cautious in their approach. So far their presence had gone unnoticed by the Knave in front of them.
"What are we going to do?" Tarrant whispered as they hid behind the stalk of a mushroom.
"We're gonna capture him! It's all we can do!" replied Mally, swinging her hatpin in the air. "Just say the word, Alice, and I'll poke out his other eye! Then he won't see anythin' comin'!"
While that was a good idea, Alice didn't like the idea that her friend would be put in harm's way. Alice considered her options for a second. "Do we have any Upelkuchen?"
Tarrant shook his head. "No, Thackery was out of Toe Jam."
Alice frowned. They couldn't wait around all day, hoping Stayne would leave. In fact, she knew that the man wouldn't move from that position until he found Alice and stopped her from becoming queen. She was suddenly grateful for Absolem's insistence that she arm herself before leaving the secure walls of the White Queen's castle.
Slowly, she unsheathed the unfamiliar sword, noting the unsure look on her face in the reflection of the blade. Mustering up her Muchness, Alice stood up. "Stay here," she instructed as she slid the weapon back into its holder and slung the sheath over her shoulder.
Tarrant stood up to follow her. "Alice-"
"No, I need you stay here," she interrupted. The only way they could outfight the Knave was having the element of surprise on their side. "I'll call you when I need you."
There was a flash of orange in his eyes, but was quickly replaced with a dull yellow. He wasn't happy with her decision, she knew, but he was willing to respect it. For now. "I hope ye know what yer doin'."
"Me too," she admitted softly.
Without allowing herself a second thought, or a first one for that matter, she made her way from the hiding place and walked directly to Stayne.
His disgusted laugh filled the air. "So, you've been hiding from the Queen all these years with those lunatics, the Hightopps." He snickered as he took in her appearance. "What? Did you get tired with your current headwear?"
Hannahlyn's hat! Alice had meant to take it off before she had left so it wouldn't get damaged during her fight with Stayne. For a moment, she considered tossing it back to Tarrant, but she knew she couldn't-not unless she was willing to reveal his position.
Which she wasn't.
She ignored Stayne and tried to walk past him to the gate.
Unfortunately, the Knave wasn't in the mood to move out of the way. "You're not going anywhere," he punctuated his statement with the drawing of his sword.
Alice drew out her own sword, suddenly grateful for her willingness to be taught how to fence by the men on the Wonder. She knew she wasn't as proficient at sword fighting as Stayne was, but she was confident that she could hold her own. "I need to get by," she said, deceptively calm.
"I can't let you do that," he said with a snarl and a thrust of his sword.
"You know," she said off-handedly as she parried, "I always wondered how a swordsman of your caliber managed to suffer such an injury from a hatpin."
Anger filled his features. "What did that blasted dormouse tell you?" he shouted, swinging his sword, nearly reaching her chest.
She took advantage of his sloppy swordsmanship and advanced, slicing his arm. "Enough," she replied simply.
With a shout, he lunged forward and his sword clashed with her own. The force of the blow caused Alice to trip. She landed squarely on her bum before rolling out of the way from his next attack.
She got up to her feet and thrust her sword forward. "It's over ye, brangergain-in' greizin'-grommer!" she shouted.
Surprise caused her hold on the sword to loosen slightly. Had she just spoken Outlandish?
"So, you have been with the Hightopps," Stayne sneered. "I should have known by your poor fighting skills. Tell me, Alice, how does it feel knowing you're about to die?"
"Ah wouldnae ken," she answered, this time prepared for the unfamiliar accent coming out of her mouth. "Perhaps ye could teel me." She lunged once, then twice but Stayne was prepared for her predictable moves. He blocked them effortlessly and advanced on Alice.
I'm nae gonnae tae be able tae defeat him, she thought worriedly.
Her confusion at her sudden capability to speak and think Outlandish combined with Stayne's superior fighting skills made her doubt her ability to defeat him without the help of her friends.
Suddenly, Stayne stepped forward. He circled his blade around hers several times before flicking his wrist, causing Alice's sword to fly out of her hand. She walked backwards until she hit the front of the gate, eyes wide in terror.
"I can't say I'm going to regret this," he said distastefully.
"Tarrant!" Alice yelled, as the blade was getting precariously close to her throat.
Startled, Stayne looked back to where Tarrant was. Alice watched as something came flying towards her. She caught the object in the air as Stayne turned back to her. Alice hadn't known what Tarrant was going to give her, but this was Mad even for a hatter.
"Is that a Squimberry tart?" Stayne asked as he looked at the tart hungrily, dropping his sword slightly.
"Yes," she answered slowly, relieved that all signs of the Outlandish accent had disappeared. She looked bemusedly at the pastry in her hand.
Before he could ask for a sample of the treat, Tarrant came up from behind him and hit the hilt of his sword against the back of his head, knocking him out.
Alice looked at the pastry, then at Stayne, then at Tarrant. "I'm assuming this all makes sense to you," she noted dryly.
!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*
Tarrant looked at her, grinning. She-along with his help-had defeated Stayne. Now there was nothing stopping her from becoming a queen and rescuing Mirana. "When you asked me for some Upelkuchen it got me thinking of all the things Thackery did put in our sacks, our bags, our -"
"Tarrant," she intervened. "The tart?"
"Oh yes, well, if you remember that slurvish greizen'-grommer was on trial for stealing th' Bluddy Behg Hid's tarts. It's quite known throughout Underland that Stayne cannot resist them," he explained happily.
Alice looked at the motionless body on the ground. "But a tart?" she asked in disbelief.
"Everyone has a Weakness, Alice. Why not a tart?" he asked, hoping she wouldn't ask him what his was. Or, his Courage countered, maybe he did want her to ask.
She smiled. "I suppose everyone does have a weakness," she replied, looking directly at Tarrant.
His heart sped up. Was she trying to say something without saying it again? Before he could ask, she looked at the gate and drew a long breath. "I suppose it's time for me to become a queen."
He pushed down his Disappointment. "We'll take care of Stayne while you go to the Queen's Position," he offered.
She whipped around and faced him. "You're not going with me?" There was no mistaking the slight Panic in her voice.
Tarrant shook his head. "Only the one petitioning for the crown can enter the Queen's Position," he explained. "We'll be waiting for you."
Alice, the Alice that had led this journey with Determination and Drive, suddenly seemed very unsure of herself. Unable to stand seeing her like that, Tarrant stepped close to her and gently cupped her cheek. "I believe in you, Alice."
His words worked better than many of the White Queen's potions could possibly hope to. Suddenly, her Muchness reappeared, stronger than it had before. She stood on her tiptoes and gently pressed a kiss on his lips.
Tarrant had never been more surprised! If his words had caused her to kiss him, then perhaps he should talk more often!
He slid his hand into her hair, pulling her close. A groan slipped from him as he felt a puff of warm Alice-breath cover his bottom lip. He felt her slip her arms around his shoulders, drawing him somehow closer to her.
Several heart-racing seconds passed before their lips separated with a small pop. She leaned her forehead against his own. "Thank you, Tarrant."
Slowly she took a step away from him. Reaching up, she carefully took the hat off her head. "Hold this for me?"
He nodded as he took it from her. Of course Alice wouldn't need a Hightopp hat anymore, he thought with a twinge of Sadness. She would wear a crown now.
"I'll be back," she said confidently before stepping through the gate.
Tarrant watched, transfixed as Alice walked away and out of sight. His Sadness didn't last long; his Memory reminded him of the amazing, astonishing, astounding Alice kiss he had just experienced.
As he opened his eyes, Chess appeared on the side of him. "She kissed me," Tarrant said, if only to prove to himself that it really had happened.
"Yes," Chess said with a sigh. "I saw that."
"What does it mean?" Tarrant asked honestly. He never had to deal with so many conflicting emotions at once before.
"It could mean nothing. It could mean everything. That's up to the two of you to decide," Chess replied.
"She does have much Muchness, doesn't she?" he asked, still looking at the gate.
"Quite." Chess looked at him carefully for a moment. "Tell me, Tarrant, what do you know about Frabjousness?"
