Chapter Thirteen

JACK

From the moment he awoke and sat up in his bed there was something very different in the air. A stillness almost that seemed to hold things into place somehow, or at least slower. Everything was stagnant, yet still moving.

Jack's eyes adjusted to the darkness in his room and to his drowsy eye he could not tell that anything had quite changed. His room was in order, his clothes were still set right, his set of cards were safely tucked inside his shirt; everything seemed in order. As his eyes slowly awakened and continued to skim the room it was his ears that detected the seemingly difference in the air. The clock on his wall, it was ticking and tocking at both a normal yet distorted pace, almost as if a bubble were over it somehow.

A knock came to his door but before he even allowed entry to the guest to his room, Tres entered the room and immediately stared at the clock on the wall. He was in his butler uniform, though he was not as primed and pressed as usual. Although Jack did not look at him directly, he could see out of the corner of his eyes that Tres had dressed in a hurry before coming to his room. His coat was not buttoned, his shirt was not tucked in, his gloves hung limply from the vest pocket, and he had on two different black shoes.

"Tres?" Jack's eyes didn't leave the distorted ticking of the clock. He wasn't entire sure what to ask first, why the time on the clock was moving strangely or why he was dressed strangely.

"Is this your doing, Master Jack?" Tres glanced at Jack before turning his gaze back to the clock.

"No." He shook his head and slipped out of his bed to stand beside Tres. "I had hoped that you could tell me what this was."

"Have you done something to anger Time?" Tres hissed a whisper as he looked to Jack.

Time was a very busy man and never allowed meetings with anyone for more than a millisecond so as not to waste his precious time on anything. Being the caretaker of the flow of time in Underland, Time took his job very seriously and rarely left his Tower. Jack had been very aware that he was one of the Queen of Hearts's old flames, one of the rare that survived a relationship with her, and he purposely limits his precious minutes of exposure to the rest of the world as a preemptive measure.

"I haven't even met Time in this timeline." Jack's brow furrowed as he looked to Tres. "Why would he have any reason to be angry with me?"

"This is Time's doing." Tres pointed to the clock and then the two watches he wore on his wrist. "He only ever stops time when he is terribly cross with someone."

"What do you mean?" Jack yawned and rubbed the remainder of his sleep from his eyes.

"I'm sure by now you've met the Hatter and the Hare?" Tres looked to Jack.

"Of course." He had only recently been exposed to the lack of flow of time at the Tea Party with the events of Alice coming to Underland. He still wasn't entirely sure just how Time controlled and moved in Underland.

"I'm not sure what things are like now, but in my time the Hatter and the Hare played a rather long joke on Time that he did not deem funny and deemed a great waste of time." Tres explained. "He stopped the flow of time there at his Tea Party and will not allow time to pass again until Frabjous Day, or until the one who is meant to slay the Jabberwocky passes into the Realm of Underland."

That was the least surprising thing that Jack could have learned about the Hatter. A great friend and fellow he was, but only to a select few. To others he was a great pain and annoyance to their life, but he rarely ever made himself unpleasant. The only time he ever truly tried a practical joke on anyone was simply out of the need to cause a distraction, a diversion, or just buy someone a little bit more time. Acknowledging that it was no wonder that Time froze the flow of time at the Tea Party, but it did not make any sense as to why the flow of time was suddenly stopped in the Anti-Realm. Just how powerful was Time, and how far could he reach with his strong powers?

Jack's brow furrowed. "Then why has Time stopped time here?"

"That's the complicated thing." Tres's brow wrinkled and so did his cheeks as he frowned. "You see, to us, since we are members of Underland, time will be distorted for us until Time has decided to remove his hold of it."

"And everyone else here can see time as usual?" Jack confirmed and pressed a hand to his head. That meant that Time's power was limited and couldn't entirely touch him in the Anti-Realm. Not that he intended on aggravating Time, but it was a good thing to know should he have to in the future. "This just got interesting."

"Interesting?" Tres scoffed and ran a nervous hand through his receding hairline. "I was late in waking up this morning! This is the most complicated thing I will have to deal with."

"I'm sure if you talk to Ms. Scatter and explain to her what is going on, she and Mr. V will provide you with some sort of pardon?" Jack blinked. "There are enough of you where you shouldn't be that greatly short staffed to have to be needed all the time."

"That depends on how you look at things, Master Jack." He gulped and tapped his thumb against the watches on his wrists. "You see, until Ms. Scatter finds proper help to take care of the Queen of Hearts, I have. . ."

"You have what?" Jack's head tilted in interest as Tres trailed off.

"I have volunteered to take care of the Queen of Hearts while you are away in Underland. . ." His black eyes were full of worry as he looked at Jack. Jack could only return his gaze in utter shock at this revelation. Tres, though he was a butler and Staff member of the Anti-Castle, was still a Card, that put him at the greatest risk of helping the Queen of Hearts.

"Tell me you're joking." Jack's mouth had gone dry as he stared at Tres. Surely, he knew how dangerous of a position he was about to put himself in if he were being serious. He could practically hear the ripping sound now. . .

"This is not a matter to even remotely joke about, Master Jack." Tres's voice dropped into a deeper pitch and Jack could see just how serious he was. A chill went down Jack and his own body felt as stiff as the lack of the flow of time swallowing him whole.

"But y-you're a Card." Jack shook his head in disbelief. "If she even remotely gets her hand on your card, she'll –"

"Of that, my dear friend, Jack, you won't have to worry about." Mr. V tapped his cane on the door and snapped both of their attention.

"Mr. V!" Tres bowed respectfully as he entered Jack's room. In his bow he realized he was poorly dressed he was and quickly fidgeted about to fix his attire as his boss proceeded to enter Jack's room. Jack merely watched Mr. V very carefully as he now stood before him.

"What, is something wrong with the clock?" His brow furrowed, but he had a knowing smirk on his face.

"Did you do something to Time?" Jack asked.

"Huh?" He blinked in confusion, but it wasn't innocent nor convincing enough. "How would I be able to do anything with time?"

The smirk couldn't help but reveal itself on Mr. V's face and Jack knew that he had some sort of involvement with Time. He wasn't sure how since the likelihood of Mr. V visiting Underland in its time of chaos did not seem very likely; but he knew why Time had stopped time for Jack.

"Now, I do believe I happened to overhear you two gentlemen discussing the matter of Cards?" He turned and looked to Tres then back at Jack.

"Ms. Scatter has told you then, I take it?" Tres gulped as he looked to Mr. V.

"Brave fellow you are." Mr. V winked at him then looked to Jack. "Yes, Ms. Scatter has indeed told me of your request of her, and though I don't necessarily like it at all, I can't very well deny the request since you were more or less her caretake before you were whisked away to my little program here."

"And you're allowing a Card from Underland to go and take care of her?" Jack could feel Diamond itching at his cheek.

"Yes." Mr. V nodded and had a glint of curiosity in his eyes as he watched the change of suits on Jack's cheek.

"Do you know what she has done to the previous Cards she once possessed?" Jack's hands balled into fists as years of traumatizing anguish flooded back to him.

"I've been told a thing or two." Mr. V nodded his head with a shrug. "That is also why you were left to be the only one to take care of her in the end."

"I, nonetheless, volunteered, Master Jack." Tres spoke up in an attempt to dissolve the tension.

"What if she gets your card?" Jack looked to him and did not even hide the change of suits as Spade flickered its way on his cheek.

"She won't." Mr. V reassured. With a wave of his hand a large three of spades appeared in his hand with a cloud of smoke. "I have it to ensure his safety."

Jack grit his teeth and he noticed how Tres froze upon seeing his calling card.

"Mr. Tres here is a valued member of our Staff." Mr. V continued and did another wave of his hand to make the card disappear. "I will not allow anything to happen to his precious card that is his very life source. Just because we are in the place full of Villains does not mean that I myself am one."

"Protect it with your life." Jack seethed through his gritted teeth as his blood began to boil. Club was desperately trying to raise his ugly head.

"Is that an order, Jack?" There was a challenge in Mr. V's eyes. Though Jack knew that Mr. V was a man of his word and wouldn't let Tres die so easily, he could hardly control himself when he grabbed Mr. V by the lapels of his coat and glared at him.

"Do not tease me, Mr. V." He hissed as his fists shook in a furious anger. "You do not know the restraint I am using to keep from going entirely mad."

Mr. V merely mirrored Jack's glare as he was held up in the air by Jack's unknowing strength. In the reflection of his eyes, Jack could see how the suit on his cheek was half of a spade and half of a club, his sadness just barely containing the anger that wanted to boil over. He quickly set Mr. V back on his own feet and released him and took a step back.

"Though the warnin' was unnecessary, you have definitely made your point, Jack." Mr. V snorted and rolled his shoulders as he adjusted his coat.

"Good." The anger within him gradually dissipated as he took a step back and went to his dresser. He snatched up one of his monochrome suits and his hat and went to the bathroom to change.

While in the bathroom he held onto the edge of the sink to try to rein in his emotions. Too much had happened within the transition of hours and his head as well as his emotions were nearly ready to implode. Gripping the edge of the sink and counter tighter he looked in the mirror to see that the suits on his face could not stop changing.

Heart, with all of his self-will and control that he possessed, was desperately trying to overcome all the other three, but he was far from being either calm or happy with the recent events that have happened. Guilt and anxiety from the Spade hardly controlled the boiling anger of the Club while Diamond's eagerness for a fight itched his face and provoked Club's anger.

He pressed his forehead to the sink and took slow deep breaths as the cool of the marble sink slowly managed to sooth his engulfing emotions. He had to get it together. He had to keep the control. He was strong enough to hold all four suits when others could hardly possess one. He needed to keep his emotions in check, he had too. He had to see Alice today, if he didn't see her, check up on her, then he wouldn't be able to see color today.

The mere thought of Alice was enough to still the swarming emotions of the four suits and allowed Heart to conquer the other three. As dangerous as it was Jack had found that not only himself, but all the other suits had an ever-growing fondness for a world of color and the girl with the prettiest blue eyes he had ever come to know. With the Heart set over his cheek once more he set about dressing himself and setting out early today to Underland. He needed to see what else Time had frozen.

MR. V

This would be the second time that Jack has displayed the Club to Mr. V. One that was still in some sort of restraint, but nonetheless still managed a threatening warning which actually had Mr. V in an ultra-rare moment he had only ever once faced before when taking down Dr. Facilier was a small fear for his life. Both Tres and Mr. V could only stare at the bathroom door that Jack had decided to hide himself within. By the heavy amount of restraint he was holding to prevent the club from escaping, he was more than likely trying to get a hold of himself altogether.

"Please do not be angry with him, Mr. V." Tres spoke quietly beside him. "The boy has the harshest of burdens the Queen of Hearts could have placed on anyone else the that has ever come into existence as a Wild Card."

"There have been others before him?" Mr. V raised an eyebrow as he turned to Tres.

"Not many, but there have been others before him." Tres nodded his head. "He's the only one that has ever been able to keep himself in order as well as his Cards to himself. All the others were used as pawns pitted against the Royals throughout Underland."

"They sound like rather tame beings to be called Wild Cards." Mr. V noted as his eyes glanced towards the bathroom.

"It all depends on how long one possesses the Cards." Tres explained. "Whoever possesses one of his Calling Cards can possess him and have him do their bidding. That goes for all Cards, actually, only Jack is a bit rarer to possess all four suits."

"What makes him so special to be able to possess all four suits?" Mr. V found himself asking in more of a hushed voice.

For whatever reason he felt as though Jack would definitely hate to know that Mr. V should know of his special abilities; though that was a bit of his job as the Writer of their Stories. . .

"He is made up of four of a kind, jacks specifically." Tres explained in a rushed hushed voice. "Most Wild Cards only consist of one suit, two on a rare occasion that one should possess them. Jacks in particular are rather rebellious and play by their own rules, they often times end up trumping other kinds of cards and are known for being clever because of it."

"Like most card games it sounds like." Mr. V mused.

"Precisely." Tres nodded. "They are powerful beings that end up harnessing the entire magic that is possessed in a single suit; which is even more powerful than a Royal's own magical abilities."

"And Jack possesses all four?" Mr. V blinked as he looked to the bathroom once more. Jack was being uncharacteristically quiet in there and Mr. V could feel a wave of anxiety wash over him. Not because he was scared of Jack himself, but more of who he would be upon walking out.

"Jack is rare because he was made with a blank Card, a castaway for most, and all four Suit Cards." Tres nodded. "How the Queen of Hearts was able to possess them all is still a mystery to me, but I do know that many heads had to roll for her to get her hands on them."

"The Queen would put that much power in an individual she can hardly control to try to take back her crown in Underland?" Mr. V's brow furrowed.

"The Queen of Hearts had fallen into the lowest parts of her life and more than likely was on the breech of madness." Tres sighed. "There's no telling what went through her mind upon the creation of the boy. He tries to hide it, but I know the burden is heavy for him. He has always done his best at keeping his emotions in check, but I fear that too much has happened for him too soon. . . There is a limit to everything, and I think he is becoming aware of that."

"I'll just have to have some of my friends keep an eye on him then. . ." Mr. V made a mental note to speak with the Cheshire Cat as soon as he could to ensure that there was someone keeping an eye on the ticking time bomb.

The door to the bathroom opened and Jack walked out, freshly dressed in his black and white suit, and much to Mr. V's relief with a Heart on his cheek.

"You're both still here?" He blinked in surprise between the two.

"I was just telling Mr. V here how you and I will be late for things with Time messing with us." Tres spoke up and Mr. V threw on a smile. He hoped that Jack would buy it, at least for a moment, and once he was gone, he would have Tres properly explain what this whole issue with time was.

"Ah, yes, this means I will more than likely be late coming back and forth between missions." Jack nodded in recognition. "I won't be surprised if I won't be able to return for a while if I get locked out between the Realms."

"Just make sure you complete you missions, Jack." Mr. V smiled and rested his hands on his cane. "As of late it has been becoming difficult for everyone to go back and forth between the Realms with certain things going on outside of the Anti-Realm."

"Will do." Jack saluted him and dropped his dirty pajamas into the dirty hamper and turned on his heel to leave.

Mr. V stood waited until Jack's footsteps had completely disappeared before turning on Tres and tapping the clock with his cane. "So, what's the deal with time?"

ALICE

Upon waking up in the morning Alice felt oddly rested but also felt even more out of place than what she was previously. She looked around the Cheshire Cat's house and could see nothing out of place, but there was something most definitely out of place. Everything looked to be in order and in its precise location, but it felt as though there was stillness in the air, almost a stuffiness. She couldn't place her finger on it, but she knew something was different today. Her brow furrowed as she looked all around the house and noticed that all the clocks were missing.

"That's odd." She tilted her head as she stared at the empty spaces that once held the clocks. For once she had anticipated his random appearance and didn't jump as he sat beside her.

"What's odd?" Cheshire Cat purred as he appeared on the bed beside her.

She turned and looked at him. "Did you remove all the clocks?"

"Yes." He nodded his head with a rather nervous smile.

"Why?" A dry laugh escaped her as she looked at the shadow remains of the clocks on the walls. What need did he have to take them all down? Then again, he was a cat, so why did he need clocks to begin with? It was a silly enough of a thought that it caused the smile to stay on her face.

"Just needed a change of pace." He shrugged before stretching forward and allowing his back to elongate itself. "It's good to change things every now and again."

"If only everyone were so accepting to change. . ." She brought her knees to her chest and hugged them. She wrapped her arms around her knees and rested her cheek on her arm as her mind drifted off to her life back in her own world. It was a small diminishing dream to have that everyone would not only be accepting of her refusal to Hamish's proposal, but also being open minded to change. Change was so hard for some generations during the transitions, and the people of her time were just as refusing in accepting change.

She chewed on her lip and felt the realization that she had just mentally refused Hamish's proposal. She shouldn't have been surprised since she never wanted to accept it to begin with, but she was almost determined to refuse it. It didn't matter if she lied and said yes to please her mother or society or anyone else, in her mind she had already refused him and there was no way she could bring herself to tell him yes. Once her mind had made its final decision, that was final.

"Stupid girl." She whispered harshly to herself. She should have tried to argue with herself more, try to convince herself of it better that things would be all right in the end, but she just couldn't.

Releasing a huff of pent up frustration, she flopped back against the pillows and threw hers arms out, only to wince as her right arm spiked with pain.

"That looked rather unpleasant." The Cheshire Cat frowned, his eyes locking onto the bandaged arm.

"I-I'm fine." She huffed again and blew her hair out of her face. "It only hurts when it is touched."

"If you would just allow me to purify it you wouldn't have to worry about any pain coming to you when your arm is touched." He frowned with his tail flicking behind him.

"N-No." She shook her head against the pillows and held her arm.

"Stubborn girl." He rolled his eyes and continued to watch her. "It's not going to heal if you continue to be this stubborn."

"I'll take my chances." She hissed and turned her head in the pillows. Her body felt heavy and sweat clung to her forehead as she tried to will herself to ignore the stinging infected pain in her arm.

"As you wish." He sighed and hopped off the bed. "I need to go out for a moment to go gather a few things for breakfast. Stay in bed and do not leave the house."

"Okay." Her throat grew dry as the heat continued to scorch through her body as a fever quickly overcame her. She couldn't quite fathom why her arm simply hadn't healed by now. It wasn't a deep scratch nor was it constantly being moved about to tear itself open again. She had used it as little as possible, but it spiked tiny needles of stinging pain throughout her and plagued her with a fever.

Would she ever wake up from this ridiculous dream?

Author's Note:

Thank you so much for reading, I hope you're enjoying the story so far!

I apologize for this chapter being considerably short, but I assure you that things are picking up!

Please remember to leave a comment and a review to tell me what you think!

Thanks for coming along the journey with me, stay tuned!

Ko-fi/SarahtheWriter