AN: Hey all! I decided to add another chapter tonight, as I'm leaving on a school trip to New York tomorrow! That's right, for the next four days I'll be in the Big Apple. So to celebrate, I'm adding the next chapter for all of you to enjoy. :D
A few notes to my reviewers:
Jasper winked: Glad you liked the title too (I thought of it rather spontaneously). Yup, the Hatter's really overprotective of Alice, especially where the Knave's concerned. And don't worry, nothing too bad will happen, I promise! Well, I can't promise that nothing will happen to the Knave. We'll see...
sailormoon456: Aha no problem with the longer chapters, honest! I have them at around 1,000 words initially and then I go over and add like crazy to them, to help flesh them out more. And I built off the fact that in the movie only Mally and Alice (mostly Alice) could really calm Tarrant when he was in a temper. And that is a very important fact; it will come up again later.
Nichelle M: You have the same first name and last initial of a friend of mine. At first I thought you were her, but then I found out you weren't...Anyway, that was interesting. And yes, Alice is close but so far away from Tarrant right now. But that will change, I promise!
When-life-gives-you-muffins: Love the author name by the way. Wow, thank you. Here's another update! :D
KThxBai: Here's chapter fourteen! (wow, this story is getting long... :P)
Hats-For-Alice: Aha, Chess seems to always get himself into trouble, the sniveling coward. But he redeems himself, don't worry.
Dreamless-Mermaid: *blush* Thank you! I would have gone to see the movie again as well but it's out of our theater now *frown* But we're getting it on DVD. I shall make sure of it. :P
Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing, not even that song quotation down there. Credit is due to Lewis Carroll, Tim Burton and Tegan and Sara (love them!)
Warning: This chapter contains minor angst and sadness, along with a curse word. You have been warned.
And now, on with the show!
It's love that leaves and breaks the seal
Of always thinking you would be
Real happy and healthy, strong and calm
Where does the good go?
Where does the good go?
- Tegan and Sara, Where does the Good Go?
Darkness was the first thing that greeted Alice upon her awakening.
It was the only thing that accompanied her in the cell she had been dumped into, save for a few rats. She didn't even recall being left in this godforsaken hole, but as she looked around with weary eyes vague images drifted in and out of the haze of pain in her mind. They were images that she would rather forget than remember.
A cloth being forced over her mouth…the faint cries of the flowers as they realized they could not help her…the sickening feeling of Stayne's hand as it brushed up her shoulder and he began to stroke her hair…her vision blackening as the potion on the cloth numbed her mind…being placed on the back of a beast and the jerk as it began to lumber away…
But lumber away to where? Alice had no memories thereafter; everything had been erased from her mind. As her eyes adjusted themselves to the darkness of her prison cell, Alice could faintly see the outline of the bare walls and floor and of a gap of light that shone through the door's barred window.
She glanced around at the peeling paint and faded hues of the walls and gasped in shock. All of the room was painted red. Crimson dye tainted the walls around her and as she flicked her head at her surroundings, she became even more distressed. The room seemed to be mocking her, the scraps of falling plaster taunting her with gaping grins cast by their shadows.
She was at the Red Queen's fortress in Crims.
It looked to be a rather decaying building as well, if her cell was any indication. From what she could see, it was a rather large room. The emptiness of it was what scared her. Aside from the deplorable state of the walls, there was nothing else interesting about the room.
If she didn't count the fact that she was laying down on the floor, with nothing but a couple of starving rats to keep her company. She should have fought; she should never have let him overpower her like that.
She was Underland's Champion. She was a young businesswoman who had slain a Jabberwocky and braved exotic lands in the name of her father's trading company.
And yet she had crumbled like the scared young woman she was when that monster approached her. It didn't help her in the least that Chessur had decided to disappear into thin air when he had caught sight of Stayne. She had been left at the mercy of the devil himself and now she was in a dank, decrepit fortress with no hope of rescue.
Alice fought the urge to cry as tears began to sting her eyes. She hadn't cried at the prospect of facing the Jabberwocky, so why was she so scared now? If anything in her life should have frightened her that event would surely have been it.
New understanding flooded Alice's mind, and fresh tears leaked out of her eyes from the thought. She'd always had someone at her side, someone who instilled hope in her and gave her the courage to do the impossible. He had helped her get her muchness back, just when she was in danger of losing it completely.
And now she was all alone.
"Tarrant…" Alice croaked, the raw emotion coursing through her veins making it difficult to speak. "Why aren't you here? I need your help…"
She needed him by her, for moral support if nothing else. When everyone else had doubted her, he had been the lone person to stand up and declare she was the real Alice. He had never hesitated as to her identity. He saw beyond the scared young woman's appearance and into the heart of the future Champion. That both scared and flattered her. How was it that he, the maddest Hatter of them all, was able to see her for who she truly was?
That was a skill it seemed few had. Few were able to see past their own indifferences and opinions long enough to see that the true Champion was standing right in front of them. It had taken Tarrant only one glance for him to confirm that she was the one the prophecy spoke of.
Hatter's relationship with Time allowed him to pick apart tiny alterations in Alice's appearance, for it was the way she looked that stumped a lot of Underlandians. Under her older guise he could still see the frightened little girl she had been upon her first visit.
So he extended a hand to help her along her journey. After all, she was the person who would save his land and win back the hearts of the people. Alice hadn't counted for her heart to be caught up in the fray as well. She had grown fond of the world she was now trapped in. She had so many friends in Underland she had trouble counting them at times.
Leaving had nearly cut her in two, although she knew it was what had to be done. She had tied up all of the loose ends in her world and had assured herself that she would return soon. Alice had never been quite sure why she held such a longing for that place in her heart, but she was sure it had something to do with Tarrant.
And now he was too far away to help her. Too far away to give her advice when she needed it most. Too far away to soothe her fears and calm her. Too far away…
She curled into a ball on the floor, dragging her dress hem in the dirt as she did so. With the tiniest shred of relief she found she was still wearing her dress, although it was a great deal muddier than before. Her boots were scraped and worn thin from walking, but they were still in one piece. The only thing missing was her travelling coat. It was nowhere in sight.
"Now Alice, there's no need to be overdramatic," a spiteful voice whispered to her.
Alice started at the sudden noise before becoming stock-still. Tears still crept down her face as she turned her head to regard the door. The previous thread of light from it had snapped and something now blocked it. It was something that exuded an aura of such malevolence that it was almost tangible.
It would seem her torturer had come to talk.
"Get away from me!" Alice shrieked. She darted upright and backed herself into the farthest corner of the room. Her chest heaving with her terrified breaths, the Champion gazed at the door with pure fear.
"Why such panic, Alice? I'm not going to hurt you."
"Liar," Alice hissed. She pressed her back even closer against the rough wall as she drew her legs up to her chest. It was a futile attempt to make herself feel safer, but it did the trick for the moment. "Why would you bring me here of you didn't wish to harm me? Why not kill me now and get it over with? Isn't that what you want, Stayne?"
The Knave chuckled darkly. "Where would be the fun in that, my dear Alice? I need you alive; how else am I supposed to have the White Queen surrender her crown?"
Alice sucked her breath in sharply. He was using her as a tool for Mirana's surrender? No, she wouldn't allow it. She would never allow that fiend to take control of Underland. Too many possibilities danced through her head at that thought. Mirana would agree with anything the Knave told her, so long as Alice was still with him.
Everyone and everything would be in an uproar and Underland would be thrown into a state of anarchy. Things would be worse than when the Red Queen was in power. She, at least, could be manipulated if need be. The Knave was so rotten no amount of begging or pleading would turn him from whatever plan he had come up with.
"Yes, you silly woman, Mirana will do whatever I say once she finds out I have you here. And who knows? Maybe Tarrant will come here in the hopes of rescuing you. Then I can finish the madman off, once and for all." Alice could practically see the Knave grinning maniacally through the wooden door.
"You wouldn't dare." Alice said, trying to make herself sound braver than she really was. Inside she was trembling in fear and shock. Tarrant, come to rescue her? But no, that would put him in danger, and she couldn't bear to see him-
She couldn't bear to see him harmed.
"You underestimate me. The Red Queen was just a pawn in a much larger game. And this time Mirana and her kingdom will be the pieces to fall. I believe that's checkmate, my dear."
"Not yet it isn't," Alice growled as she hugged her arms around her legs. "You were banished once and you shall be banished again. It's only a matter of time before they figure out where I am."
She would persevere throughout all of this. She would come out of it alive, no matter how many wounds scarred her body. She could deal with physical pain; in time it would fade. Mental suffering was what she could not stand. Broken bones would heal, but how would one go about fixing a broken mind?
The only person she could think of to answer that question was halfway across Underland, and hopefully in Marmoreal's castle. That thought was enough to make Alice's heart tighten.
Stayne moved his head, as if to see her better. "Oh, I don't doubt they will. But I'm not sure how much time you have left before you break. What would Tarrant think if he came here hoping to find you, only to discover you've expired before he could-"
"Shut up!" Alice screeched. She launched herself at the door while spitting obscenities at the Knave. Stayne stepped back a bit from the door as Alice pounded at it with fury. She wouldn't die, she couldn't die. That would be too hard on everyone. Stayne would take control of Underland and everything would be torn asunder.
Lives would be lost, families destroyed and homes burned to the ground. A veritable hell on earth. And Alice was the only thing keeping that from becoming the reality of Underland. She would stand between Underland and Stayne while she still had legs to do so.
"Bit of a wildcat, aren't you, Um?" the Knave whispered as he slowly faded from view. "No matter, though. I'll get rid of that obstinate nature for you. You will break eventually, Alice. Don't you worry your pretty head about that…"
When Stayne disappeared Alice stopped pummelling the door and she slowly sank to the ground. Her body hitched with fresh sobs as she gazed around her prison. She hated being in this room, but she had no idea why. There was something familiar about it, but it wasn't the good kind of familiar. It was the kind of familiar that made her want to run far way from the room and never look back.
The thin shaft of light returned now that the Knave had left, and Alice's tear-filled eyes picked up details of the room that she had previously missed. Details such as the length of the room itself and the way the dust collected on the floor. It looked like there had been several tables scattered all over the room, if the dust-free rectangles of ground were any indication. As Alice scanned around the room, she saw something peculiar.
Something that nearly stopped her heart from beating.
She now knew what room she was in; even if it appeared that there was nothing to distinguish it from the rest of the castle. It was in the shape of it, in the colour of the faded walls. It was in the tiny scraps of fabrics and feathers that were scattered over the floor. No wonder she hadn't noticed them before; they were so tiny.
Stayne had put her in the Hatter's old cell.
The cell that he had spent so much time imprisoned in while making hats for the Red Queen. The cell she had found him in. The cell that the Knave had caught her in. The cell the Hatter had nearly escaped from.
Alice ran her hand along the rough floor as pictures flashed through her mind of all the things that had happened in the cell. The Knave was smarter than she had first thought; what need was there to physically wound her when she was breaking internally without any effort from him? Torture wouldn't be necessary at all, if he kept her in here.
Memory was the best weapon to unhinge a person's mind.
And Alice was beginning to come apart at the seams.
AN: Just to let you all know, there will be minor torture/violence in the next few chapters. But only minor stuff. Like it was explained above, the Knave doesn't need to hurt her physically if he can manipulate her mind. Thus sticking her in Hatter's cell. If that doesn't bring on a torrent of memories, I don't know what will.
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