MOAR CHAPTERS. Cuz' I've been slacking and, let's face is, half the reason you guys follow this story is because of fast updates ;P Jk jk but still, I feel kind of guilty. But yes! This story is almost over, don't worry though, it's not gonna be years before the sequel shows up :3
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Two weeks after Alice's revival, the doctors told her she was safe to go home, and for that interim, the Clover Tower trio had taken up residence in Heart Castle. Peter took each and every chance to go pester the girl, which wasn't often, as Julius had seemed to assign himself the position of her bodyguard. When Peter showed up, he took care of it. When Ace was getting annoying, he threw him out. When Alice had broken down in tears after her conversation with Edith, the Clockmaker was the first one there trying to console her, Gray and Nightmare following soon after.
Once the Queen's doctors had given her the clearance to return to Jabberwocky Tower, she was filled with joy and dread alike.
First, she was happy to be returning home. While she did not live in the Tower, a few nights in the bed of the enormous master bedroom would definitely not hurt her. Also: both her sisters were coming with her for a week. Charles and Henry had declined the offer of returning to the mountains, and she was extremely grateful inside for that, if not a little confused. She got to be with her siblings one last time, and Julius as well as Gray and Nightmare would be staying as well. Her sisters and three of her closest friends, it would be wonderful! At least for Alice it would be...
As for the dread, well, now that she was better, she was going to have to start taking several hours each week to deal with Blood. For the rest of April Season into the return of the normal world. As much as Alice wanted to slip out of her promise, it was not in her nature, nor the dragons nature, to go back on her word. Tempting though it was to simply break off their deal and challenge Joker instead, she was honest, even if her...colleague, might not be of so virtuous a nature.
The moment she returned, however, her thoughts were turned elsewhere. As Julius helped her walk up the steps of the tower, she heard the insistent scratching of a pen on paper. She thought nothing of this until she passed the office.
Pierce was sitting at her desk, studiously looking over a bit of paperwork. This in itself would not have been strange if it wasn't for the fact that her assistant was a mess. She could smell the body odor all the way from her place in the hallway, so it was clear he hadn't been keeping up with his hygiene. His hair was dull and greasy and sticking up at odd angles, his tail was flicking irritably against the ground, and the circles under his eyes were so big and so dark, that from the right angle, he looked more like a raccoon than a mouse. His jacket and hat were nowhere to be found, and many of the buttons on his shirt appeared to be either in the wrong holes or completely undone. The Dormouse definitely wasn't looking his best.
"Pierce?!" She yelped, "What are you doing?!" He was about to respond when Gray pushed his way into the office.
"Don't worry Alice," he smiled reassuringly at her, "I'll take care of this." And as he shut the door, she could hear him instructing her aide to go home, take a shower, and get some sleep. Gray said that he would take over the paperwork until both he and the dragon were well enough to do it themselves.
"That man is too kind for his own good." She murmured, as Julius helped her through the threshold to the building's living area.
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As Blood mused over the events of the past two weeks, he couldn't stop himself from smiling in sheer satisfaction. It would be nothing to send the family home, and for one last week, Alice would be spending time with her sisters, however that was not going to make him relax the terms of his agreement. She was well enough to return to the tower, and so was well enough to also get to the mansion for their "appointments".
When Blood had spoken with his sister on the matter during one of their visits, she had snorted and rolled her eyes. She leaned back on the chair and tilted her head at him.
"There is little chance that this will work." She stated. As always, her little brother looked confused,
"What do you mean?" He asked, and she shook her head, despairing of his ignorance.
"You do not understand how women work," she mumbled, and then louder, "As long as she feels trapped or cornered - and no doubt this agreement has left her feeling as such - she will refuse to acknowledge you during the time she does not have to. We would not be surprised if the second these three months are over, you never hear from her again." Her brother merely smiled,
"Then I guess I need to ensure she does not feel cornered or trapped." The Queen merely raised an eyebrow. "Do not worry yourself, sister," Blood stated, "I took her heart once, I can do it again."
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Ace plopped down onto his bed, exhausted. The few times he could actually find his room in the absurd maze that was the castle, he always took a great deal of comfort from the fact that there was a space within civilization that was for him and him alone. He took in the familiar, though dusty scent of his sheets and stared up at the ceiling, forlorn. He could barely make out the images, as the drapes were drawn and he hadn't bothered to light a lamp.
Alice wasn't giving in. After they had little spats like that, up in the mountains during their secret meetings, her anger never lasted. She would bristle at him a few minutes, heal the wounds she inflicted with her wondrous dragon-fire, and the incident would be forgotten in seconds. They'd return to their conversation, and steer it to more cheerful topics than whatever had set him off.
This time, however, she wasn't going to forgive him. Not that easily. To threaten her was one thing, to threaten those she loved...that was quite another. It would take something big to win her forgiveness, and it would take even more for him to get back into her good graces. Ace thought long and hard, and it took him a good two hours and thirty-seven minutes to figure out the perfect solution.
Alice had told Ace of her past life, but Ace had never told her anything about his, when he was faceless. He briskly stood up, and circled around the bed. He then bent down, flipped the carpet, and lifted the loose floor-board. It was a juvenile trick, but in the event a nosy maid or servant ventured into his room, he needed this one thing to remain safe.
He picked up a rectangular object, covered in dirty white cloth, and unwrapped it carefully. He then replaced the floorboard and fixed the carpet. Ace then blew the dust off of the cover of the book, and flipped open the pages.
The quality of the ink imprints was still good and ever-persevering, though some of the penciled images might need a little bit of revision and maybe tweaking. However, he would not change a single line, curve, or geometric shape that presented itself. If this didn't get Alice to soften up, nothing would. He placed the book in one of the many pockets of his jacket, and silently invoked the Rule of Challenges one last time. Finished with this task, he stepped out of his room, and left the castle.
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When Julius had led her to her room, he left her standing on her own for a moment, but it was still frustrating. She had appreciated his assistance up the stairs, but on level ground she was fine! In spite of that, he had insisted on helping her to her room and more. He pulled down the covers on her bed and stepped towards her when she raised a hand to stop him.
"I am more than capable of putting myself to bed Julius." She barked, irritated. Yes, she was nursing a bullet wound, but it had been two weeks! She was almost completely better! The Clockmaker merely glared at her and crossed his arms. As much as he complained about her, he was more stubborn than she could ever hope to be. She bristled at him until he took the initiative and actually had the audacity to pick her up and place her in the bed.
"What do you think you are doing?!""
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"What do you think you are doing?!" A muffled yelp came from the bedroom. Slightly alarmed Lorina covertly looked around the wall into the room that she and Charles had shared for one night. She was shocked to see the long-haired man - Julius was his name? - lift Alice into his arms, and gently place her on the bed while she snarled that she could do it herself. Lorina, smiling, ducked away before she was seen, but listened as Alice's irritation quieted into pleasant conversation and even bits and pieces of laughter, though it was strictly on her part.
Lorina liked this prospect much better than the Queens knave. Ace had seemed nice enough, but he had seemed rather...odd. Bad odd. Alice could do better. Lorina might not have been to see her sister often at the castle - she was too preoccupied with her husband's strange behavior - but she was aware of this mans consistent presence in the castle at her sister's bedside. It had been her understanding that, had Alice any need or worry, Julius would do his best to remedy the issue at once, and so Lorina had been reassured that Alice was well cared for.
Alice had also spoken very highly of the Clockmaker, who restored life into this horrific and violent world. Her face had softened considerably when she explained what he did, and how it was always so peaceful to relax in his office and watch him repair the clocks as opposed to spending time with the other occupants of Wonderland, who brought her into dangerous situations all the time. Some of the residents had even tried to kill her.
No, just listening to Alice talk about the Clockmaker had already put this man in Lorina's good graces, and so far he seemed quite perfect. He was gorgeous, certainly. His long hair was such a pretty color, and his face was all sharp angles and high cheekbones. He was almost a foot taller than Alice, and though she was definitely a terrifying sight on her own, he still treated her as a proper lady, worthy of all his gentlemanly grace. Watching the careful consideration he showed her sister, the seeming devotion, the respect, and even eavesdropping on their teasing, the eldest sister definitely preferred this man to both Blood and Ace. She would definitely encourage this one to pursue Alice.
Lorina hadn't seen her younger sister interact so happily and carefree with a man since Charles.
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When Julius had finally retired for the night, Alice sighed, and leaned back into her pillow, savoring the clean vanilla scent of her sheets before she sighed, flipped the covers, and stood up.
Just before she left the castle, Dee had delivered an envelope to her. No Dum, just Dee, hiding behind a bush and trying to get her attention as quietly as possible. Inside that envelope had been an invitation to Hatter Mansion.
"Alice Liddell
You are cordially invited to the mansion in three days to attend a private tea party. It will be held one hour after the night period falls.
-The Mad Hatter"
It was odd for him to be so formal, but then...He had used the term 'court'. Perhaps...he wanted to do this in a manner that she would be comfortable with?
Uh huh, sure, she thought, And pigs are flying.
Blood did as he pleased. He didn't think about anyone but himself. The wings and tail dominating her back, and the insane voice in her head were proof enough of that. However...the thought that this might be an attempt to set something right... No. That was wishful thinking.
Alice had always liked Blood well enough, when he was behaving like a person that is. He was well-versed in culture and literature, and he knew so many things about her world that she had never been allowed an education in, because she was a girl. He had taught her the basics of several different sciences as well as medicine, explained about some of the more complex aspects of the cultures in Asia and Africa, and had even shown her how to read in Italian, when she had asked why one of his books was not in English.
Unlike London, there were far fewer gender-barriers in Wonderland, and when Alice had explained about such things to Blood, he had initially thought she was joking. Insisting she was being serious, he'd taken it upon himself to be both her teacher and friend. Where in her world, it was viewed as unladylike to have knowledge of 'manly' professions and not-so-light subjects, in Wonderland she was only half-educated.
This had shown that Blood had cared about her to some degree. Had it not been for the fact that he was so self-absorbed, was so often senselessly cruel...she would still be on his arm. Alice had slipped the invitation down the front of her dress, having nowhere else to put it and not wanting to risk losing it, and proceeded to the carriage, unable to think of anything else.
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Maybe Blood isn't as horrible as we thought. But yes, please read and review! I just got my fiftieth one! It's great! And to Mycha, who was that fiftieth reviewer: YES! YOU KNOW THE REFERENCE! I've been wanting to use it since the first chapter, but couldn't smuggle in an opportunity until the 24th, so I got really excited when you said Lightning Bug. xD
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