Chapter Twenty-Five

JACK

A gentle breeze blew past him and something didn't feel right. They were still in the Twisted Forest with the Cheshire Cat tagging along with them, but something was afoot, as though something had entered the forest that shouldn't have. All the hairs stood on the back of his neck as he stopped and surveyed the forest. Luckily the mists of the forest helped to dissuade the scents of the air, however, there was something odd happening in their swirlings. The sun was slowly but surely peeking through the leaves and what little light shined through the leaves the mists would dissipate entirely and cease its swirling. It was faint but Jack caught the sound of howling hounds in the distance and he knew that his time was up.

"Jack?" The Cheshire Cat crooned curiously. His ears flicked towards the sound and his tail flicked anxiously.

Diamond spiked an itch through him as he was overtly aware that he still had at least two hours to bring Alice to safety before Stayne was to be sent out. Something had happened, he wasn't sure what or why things had suddenly changed so drastically but time was of the essence.

"Jack?" Her voice was soft like a bird's song as Alice placed a hand on his shoulder. He turned and quickly returned to Heart upon hearing her but with how wide her eyes were, he knew she saw Diamond. "Is something the matter?"

"Yes." He didn't try to deny the high possibility that Underland was undoing all the safety precautions he had made and rushing things along. It would seem that even Time could not hold back Underland's movements for long.

She gasped and searched his face, "Is it the Queen?"

He shook his head, "The Knave. He's after me more than you."

"Why?" her brow furrowed.

"I don't have time to explain," he quickly dug around in his coat pockets for a bottle of Pishalver. As soon as his finger brushed against the bottle, he snatched it up and uncorked it. "You need to drink this."

He practically forced it in her face, and she turned away from it with her nose turned up. "I don't like Pishalver. It's too dry and it makes me shrink. I like my current height."

"I do to," he still pushed the glass vial into her face. "But If I am to keep you safe you need to drink this so I can carry you. It'll be faster and I can hide you better that way."

"But –"

"This isn't the time for arguing, Alice." The Cheshire Cat hissed as his ears bent back against his skill and his eyes dilated into slits. "There are dogs in my forest, and it is only a matter of time until they catch up."

She opened her mouth to make a comment and Jack stole the chance to pour the liquid in her mouth. Before she could truly react, he pressed his hand over her mouth and nose to force her to swallow. She beat on his arm the second she swallowed, and he released her in time to allow her to cough and to shrink.

"You're –" Her cough was so dry, and her glare was too cute for Jack. "You're terrible!"

"I know dear," he wasted no time in waiting for her to shrink and scooped her up in his arms. The moment he secured both of arms around her, a hand on her head and the other on her back, he bolted. The Cheshire Cat was a puff of smoke running alongside him to vaporate occasionally to make sure they were still together before returning to a hazy state and rushing on ahead. Jack tried not to jostle her around too much as he ran, but it had grown increasingly difficult to hold her in one place for long as she steadily shrunk in his grasp.

Her little hands clung to the lapels of his coat and he was grateful for the reassurance that she was still there. She shrunk to the size of a toddler and clung to him as they ran. He only hoped that the Hatter had more Pisksalver with him to make her shrink even more if it were necessary. There were much larger creatures in Underland than there were smaller ones so she would be safe and hidden in plain sight by being so small until she got to the White Palace.

With every foot that bounded from the earth his heart in his chest pounded harder and harder. He had been hesitant before now, part of him wanted to believe that he was still torn in his choice, but his heart had made the choice for him. He was going to save Alice one way or another. No matter how it was explained to him, no matter what Underland wanted, no matter what others would tell him Alice was innocent in all this and was a piece to be used to win a game. He couldn't willingly and knowingly allow it to happen, not when she had gifted him the beauty of color and pleasant conversation in such a strange and cruel world. No matter how his mind screamed at him that it was impractical, that he was being traitorous to the Queen's happiness, that he was being selfish, his heart won out over his mind.

It was the right thing to choose Alice. He couldn't be with her, especially not with the Queen's troops already so close to him now, but he could protect her and get her out of Underland. They could kill him, but he couldn't handle the thought of them hurting her. He held her tighter to his chest as he ran away with his thoughts as quickly as he could the Hatter and the Hare. He hoped he was faster than the hounds' noses, he hoped that the mists would rest a little longer and hide their scent until he deposited her to the Hatter. The Hatter was mad, yes, but he knew the way to the White Queen, and he would get Alice to her if all but for the sake of fulfilling Frabjous Day.

Out of the Twisted Forest at the edge of the swirling scentless mists at the top of the hill Jack could see the Hatter's Tea Party still commencing. He panted heavily and his mind worked fast and hard to catch up with him to figure out what to do next. He had two options, take Alice to the Hatter and run off to divide the scents, or to hand Alice off to the Cheshire Cat now so he could take his scent elsewhere. He was sure that there had to be a third option, but his heart pounded so loudly in his ears that he could hardly think.

"Jack." Alice's small hand touched his chin and he immediately looked down. A puddle of cloth practically swallowed her as she had shrunk but she still looked beautiful to him nonetheless. If anything, it made her look even more beautiful like Aphrodite rising from the sea. He hoped she could not hear his heart pounding in panic and fluttering in happiness.

"Are you all right?" He petted her head and looked for any signs of damages or mishandling. Other than her hair being a little poofy from the run and her clothes being disheveled from the shrinking everything was still perfect about her.

"I'm fine." She tilted her head to the side and studied his face. "Are you all right?"

"I will be," he reassured with a nod and a shaky smile.

"If we're all right then let's get moving." The Cheshire Cat tossed his head in the direction of the Hatter. "You move quick for only having two legs, but they will still catch us if we dawdle."

The cat began to evaporate when Jack suddenly called out to him. "Chess."

His ear flicked as he turned and looked to Jack, "What?"

"Can you take Alice to the Hatter?" He didn't dare look at her, but he could see her out of his peripherals. He had always been terrified of what it would be like to betray the Queen, but the pain it caused him to see the look of betrayal on Alice's face could never compare to anything else he had ever felt.

"Jack." Her voice was sharp, but nervous. Her hold on his lapels tightened and she gave it a quick tug as if trying to get his attention. He kept his eyes locked with the Cheshire Cat's large contemplative green eyes.

"What?" Even the Cheshire Cat seemed confused by this. Jack tapped his foot impatiently and wanted to just hand her over so the Cat would have no choice but to take her from him, but he wanted to hold onto her for as long as he could.

"Can you take Alice to the Hatter?" Jack repeated in a rush and struggled to remind himself why he needed to hand her over rather than hold on to her for a few moments longer. He didn't budge and, in a way, he locked himself into place to continue to hold her. "They're currently going after me, a-and if I hand her off to you now, I can run and take them in another direction!"

"Please no." Alice's voice was barely a whisper. "Not yet."

The Cat glanced from Alice to Jack before he completely evaporated away. "We're already here, you should just do it." There was a chuckle in the cat's voice that told Jack he would not be helping him in any way and would force him to see things through.

Jack couldn't stop the hissed curse that fell from his lips before he took off in a run again. He just needed this to go a little easier for him so he could keep her safe, why was this so hard for that damned cat to understand? He was so lost in his thoughts that he hadn't even heard Alice trying to talk to him until she suddenly screamed. "Jack, wait!"

He skidded to a halt and looked down at her. "What?"

"Why don't you just go with me?" She pleaded, those blue eyes brimming with tears. If only she realized how much he wanted to. It was a dream in his nightmare, but he didn't want to taint the dream by dragging the nightmare with him.

"I told you I can't." He shook his head in finality. If there were any other option that would make her safe, he would do it, but he couldn't.

"Surely the White Queen will let you –" Her hands shook his lapels as if hoping to shake some sort of sense into him, or least have him listen to her.

"I'm sure she would." He held her out where he could look her in the eye.

"Then come with me!" She pleaded, her hands clinging to his wrists desperately.

"As much I want to go with you –" Her face lit up for a moment at his words and he grimaced that he had to finish his sentence. "As great as that would be that would only put you in more danger. If I can prevent a little of it from going your way it is all the better."

"But I –" She hiccupped and nearly broke his heart as tears slipped from her eyes. "But I don't want to go without you."

Never in all his life had a woman's tears affected him as greatly as this. He had hardened his heart to a woman's tears because of the Queen of Hearts's temper tantrums whenever she did not get her way. He was always ready to help a woman in need, but he steeled his heart against their tears. Alice's eyes became murky and sad as tears filled her eyes and it melted the steel around his heart and tore it in half.

"You have too, Alice." He tried to smile but he could feel his resolve wavering with her tears. If this persisted, he would be too ready to go with her when he needed to stay away from her now. "You're much stronger than you realize. You can handle yourself better than you realize, you just need to find that confidence within yourself! You'll be all right, Alice."

"Not without you," she shook her head in argument and Jack had never felt such a lack of control. More tears fell from her eyes and his heart broke a little. A little whimper of distress fell from her lips and it took all of his resolve to not hold her in his arms and comfort her.

He had no idea what to do, how to make this right, how to fix this, how to keep her safe, how to keep her happy, how to just keep her in his arms – all these things confuddled his heart and had his mind screaming at him to man up to the choice that he made.

"You'll be all right, Alice." He spoke softly, soothingly as he reassured her and cupped her cheek. Her cheek was so squishy and puffy in his hand that it made her look even more adorable as he squished her cheeks together. He wanted to kiss her to reassure her, but he wouldn't. He gently used his thumbs to wipe the tears from her eyes. "You're strong, you'll make it through this."

She leaned her head in his hand and it was just too much for him. Before he could stop himself, before his mind could tell him what to do, he had his arms wrapped around her and holding her tightly to his chest. She in turn wrapped her little arms around his neck and clung to him like he was her lifeline. He wasn't sure if it was the fact she now possessed his Heart or if it was his ever-growing attraction to her that made him act so affectionately towards her. No matter how much he respected the Queen of Hearts he could not allow her to have Alice.

He held her for a few moments longer, resting his head against hers before gingerly pulling her away from him. She was resistant at first, but she slowly and willingly released him. He crouched down and set her feet on the ground and looked at her. Her face had tears stains running down her cheeks, her eyes were slightly pink, and her cheeks were so squishable. He pulled his handkerchief out and dabbed her cheeks free of any remnant tears before placing his hands on both of her cheeks and squishing them together. Her brow furrowed at his actions and he couldn't help but laugh at the funny face she now made.

"You're such a cute little darling," he chuckled as he slowly removed his hands from her face.

She tried to scowl, but she couldn't seem to hold it for long as her face broke out in a smile, "Had anyone else done that I would have bitten them."

"I suppose it is a good thing that I'm not just anyone else," he chuckled as he handed her his handkerchief. "I am Jack Heart, the Wild Card of Underland, so most rules don't apply to me."

"I still don't quite understand what that means." She sniffled and wiped her nose with the handkerchief. "But I'm glad that you're not like anyone else that I know."

His heart did a backflip and instead of hugging her again he took the chance to stand and hold his hand out to her. "Come, my dear Alice, I need to get you to the Hatter before the Knave shows up or else things will get quite messy."

All smiles fell from her face and though she looked as though she wanted to argue more, she nodded her head and grabbed his hand. Her hand was even smaller than before and he greatly missed her being at her normal height. She just seemed to fit so perfectly within him that he greatly missed it. No words were shared between them as they descended the hill that would lead to the Tea Party. With each step closer to the Hatter and the Hare, Alice's hand clenched Jack's that much tighter. He would have squeezed it back, but he was terrified of crushing her shrunken hand with his much larger one. With each step they took closer to the Tea Party the tighter Jack's chest felt. He was never one for goodbyes and this was the worst goodbye he would ever experience. A howl in the distance reminded him of why he had to say farewell to her.

The old rundown windmill was all aglow, the Hatter poured a fresh cup of tea while the Hare fumbled about and Malley swung her tiny sword around and proceeded to poke the bundles of fruit on the table. The Cheshire Cat was nowhere in sight, but Jack was sure that he would reappear if only to scare the Hare into a tizzy. As soon as they stepped into the imaginary border of the Tea party, the Hatter's head snapped up. "Jack!" He smiled and nearly slammed the teapot on the table. "And Alice!"

He hopped up and ran across the table to greet them. Jack was able to throw on a quick smile to hide his distress for the current situation while Alice was not as able to as her smile fell short. "Hello, Hatter," he forced the chipper beat in his voice, but the Hatter did not look too deterred by his lack of enthusiasm and still enjoyed having them in his presence.

"It is so good to see you again, my friend!" He clapped Jack's shoulder before looking down to Alice. "My, you look dreadful, Alice."

"Sorry." She rubbed her eyes. "I suppose I didn't get enough sleep."

"Nothing a good cup of tea can't fix." He smiled before quickly snatching her hand up in his and leading her down the tops of the tables as he had done last time. Jack remained where he was with a glare in his eyes as he watched Alice being manhandled, but there was little else he could know that she was in the Hatter's care. He turned to go once the Hatter had helped Alice into her seat when the Hatter suddenly called to him.

"Jack, aren't you staying?" His fluffy brow was furrowed, and his smile had turned down into a puppy frown.

"I'm afraid I can't," Jack shook his head. "I must return to the Queen."

"Surely just one cup," he pleaded slightly. "It's ever so rude to leave once the tea has been made!"

"Yes, Jack," A certain purr echoed in a seat as the Cheshire Cat appeared in the seat beside the Hare, "you should stay a while, at least for one cup."

Jack's teeth clenched as he glared at the gray cat. He knew all too well why he needed to leave sooner rather than later and yet he had the gall to press him to stay for tea. All eyes were on Jack but the only pair that he dared not look at, the ones that beseech him the most, was Alice's big pleading blue eyes. Though she remained silent her eyes were much louder than the other voices trying to convince him to stay. Before he could properly reject their offer for tea, though, the howls from the hounds were louder and he could hear their nails scratching at the dirt to get closer to their sniffed-out target.

The entire Tea Party came to a halt as they all heard the howling of the hounds and watched them come into view. Seven Black Card soldiers and two hunting hounds came into view with the Knave of the Queen slowly appearing on his steed at the top of the hill. Diamond completely appeared prickling with an itch for violence at the man he wanted to see the least.

"Oh, no." The Hare murmured before scuttling about the table trying to set things right and make everything look perfect and in order.

"The Knave," Malley the Dormouse hissed and clutched a spoon to her in fear at the impending doom that would surely come from the dreaded man. Even the Cheshire Cat evaporated with a soft farewell and a touch to Jack's shoulders as the Cards and the Knave and the hounds descended the hill.

Jack turned at the scuttling and nearly panicked when he saw Alice in a still formidable size to be seen from the hill where Stayne sat upon his horse. It was the Hatter that acted first and shoved a bottle of Piskshalver into Alice's mouth to force her to shrink again. "Drink this, quickly," he hissed and moved about the table to act like his normal self.

"Quickly!" The Hare hissed as he hopped about the table after setting things to right before settling in a good spot close to the Hatter. With a series of coughs that grew smaller and quieter as she shrunk, she completely disappeared in the fabrics of the clothes. Jack's heart froze as he watched the Hatter scoop up the fabric materials, with Alice lost in the folds and shoved it into an empty teapot before hiding it under the table.

The three usual tea partiers all acted normal, sipping their tea and having their active conversation while Jack kept his eyes locked to the spot where the Hatter was hiding Alice. The Hatter gave him a look of warning as Stayne approached and loomed over him on his horse. Narrowed eyes and quick glances with nervous conversation budded all around the table as Jack turned on his heel and glared up at the Knave who looked all too pleased to see him.

His hands clenched into fists digging his nails into his skin as he looked up at the scheming Knave. There was a glitter of happiness in his eyes that Jack immediately noticed as if he had finally caught Jack in the act of something. Stayne threw his leg over the horse so that he could slide out of the saddle easier and all too triumphantly walked over to them. His nose was in the air and there seemed to be a great bit of pride building within him as he approached the table.

"Well, if it's not my favorite trio of lunatics," he sneered as he stopped at the edge of the table and acknowledged the tea partiers first. "And my least favorite Wild Card."

"Would you like to join us?" Malley chittered cheerfully, but Stayne paid him no mind as his eyes were locked with Jack's. It was a challenge he posed, the one to break eye contact first would lose and it would expose something; at least that is what Jack picked up from the way Stayne promulgated his way around the table.

"Stay for tea!" The Hare declared before throwing a hot piping cup of tea at Stayne. With quicker reflexes than even Jack anticipated, Stayne ducked out of the way for the cup to hit one of his Soldiers in the face instead. He hissed in pain and while Stayne glared at the Hare, no words of concern were offered to the Soldier. The others looked at him, but he waved it away to show he was fine.

The three tea partiers all chittered and giggled in glee at what had happened, and Jack was relieved that it had caused Stayne to break eye contact first, but he still could not relax with the Knave being present and far closer to Alice than he wanted. It didn't help that he could hear the faint knocking against porcelain. Alice pleaded in a soft voice, though he was sure she was yelling, to be released from her tea pot encasing; Jack prayed that Stayne couldn't hear it past his loud ego. Hoping to distract his attention away from the Hatter and the tea pots, Jack dared to engage in a sense of conversation with Stayne.

"What are you doing here, Stayne?" Jack growled, hardly able to hold back the thrashing he wanted to give him. His hand reached for the table for something to hold onto to root him to the spot. It was a miracle that the table didn't wobble with the amount of strength he used to hold it since it was not evenly placed or secure to the ground in any way.

Slowly making his way around the table and examining everything he could with his good eye he paused and spared a glance at Jack. "We're here looking for the girl, Alice."

"That's what I'm doing," Jack growled as Stayne paused in front of him again.

"It is what you were supposed to be doing," Stayne corrected with a smirk high and evident on his face.

"I still have another two hours before you're supposed to be here!" The table began to shake under his hold until he finally placed his other hand parallel to it.

"The Queen decided that you had enough time," he sounded like a snake laughing as he continued to circle the table like a vulture waiting for its prey to die. "So, she sent me to come retrieve Alice in your stead."

Jack didn't voice his opinion since it would do none of them any good. He could easily point fingers and saw that Stayne lied and persuaded her to let him leave early, but something within him knew that things were amiss and that it had to be Underland's doing. Stayne was clever, but not clever enough to truly wiggle his way into everything. Underland was acting as impatient as the Queen of Hearts and decided to move things along without Jack's consent, this he was sure of.

"Speaking of the Queen," the Hatter sat up exuberantly in his chair, "here's a little song we used to sing in her honor."

The Hatter proceeded to lead the Hare and the Dormouse into the fun little song on "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Bat" and gave Jack an encouraging look as Stayne rounded the head of the table. Not seeming to be amused by their difference of a song, Stayne hooked his arm around the Hatter's throat and held him in a headlock.

"If you're hiding her, you'll lose your heads," Stayne hissed into the Hatter's ear but sent the warning glare to the Wild Card. It was a warning to all of them at the table, but especially for Jack. It came as no surprise that the Knave was suspicious of him, nor that he seemed to want any excuse to get rid of him. Still, he was sniffing around far too close for comfort and he needed to lead him off the scent somehow.

Venom of hatred was exchanged between the Queen's two favorite Court Members and a mutual understanding as well. Though the Diamond made its presence known, Jack knew better than to give any reaction to Stayne's antics. He was gauging him for something, trying to see what information he could get out of the Wild Card he despised so much. With a sharp biting of his tongue Jack made sure to maintain his composure and remained immovable to the Knave's prodding. Completely unaware of the unspoken war between the two, or perhaps taking the opportunity for distraction, the Hatter looked at the Knave unabashedly with a serious face, "We've already lost them!"

The Hare and the Dormouse rolled over in laughter at the Hatter's cheeky grin. Stayne growled as he ripped his arm away from the Hatter and continued to circle the table. "All together now!"

The Hatter flicked in time to a beat with his fingers in his way of conducting his companions into another verse of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Bat" while Stayne made his way back to Jack at the other end of the table just as one of the hounds went sniffing and moving under the table.

"What use would they have in hiding Alice here?" Jack quipped as his eyes followed Stayne around the table. "You're wasting your time here, Stayne."

"It seems as though you've been wasting your time with this band of idiots," Stayne sneered down at Jack and started the eye contact challenge again while his hound went sniffing.

"I beg to differ, they're far better company than you are," he tilted his head and maintained eye contact with Stayne. His heart thundered in his chest though as soon as the hound went all the way to the Hatter. He did not look away from Stayne as he heard the Hatter gasp in a quick pinch of pain before mumbling something incoherently to the hound. Jack's hold on the table only increased as he stared up at the Knave who was waiting for him to break. He was practically seeing red with how ready he was for the fight.

A snarl broke out on Stayne's face and Jack couldn't help but feel a little victorious for it. "Then you have low standards in class."

"I beg to differ, they are in much higher regards than you, even to the Queen," he threw back with a smirk, but that did not deter Stayne.

"We shall see." Wordlessly Stayne reached for a teacup on the table and maintained his glare with the Wild Card rather impressively. Too much was at stake if he lost this challenge to Stayne. It mattered not what happened to him, he would take Stayne and the other Card Soldiers on if need be to let the others escape with Alice. He would fight them to the death and even allow the Club to have a little tantrum of fun if it meant giving them the chance to escape. The cost of his sanity meant nothing so long as Alice was taken to the White Queen.

"I don't know what you expect to find here at a Tea Party," Jack snorted and feigned confidence. "I haven't seen a sign of Alice since the day you ruined my chance to bring her in."

"Then why are you here, Wild Card?"

"For a spot of tea, what else?" Jack smiled coyly at him but did not pick up a teacup. Jack practically held his breath as he prayed the dog would just leave. He was not one to hurt animals, and he would rather not have to, but that dog was sniffing around far too close. . .

With narrowed eyes, Stayne lazily sipped on his tea and seemed to be greatly disappointed when the hound ran out from under the table and led them in another direction. It howled and led the others deeper down the path and away from the Tea Party. The proud triumph that was once on his face quickly burned into a scowl as he slammed his teacup into the ground.

"As you can see," Jack chuckled. "She's not here."

"So it would seem. . ." he looked from Jack to the Hatter then back to Jack. "This isn't over."

"No, this is only the beginning," Jack glowered as Stayne finally turned to leave and to regroup with his regiment.

"You shouldn't linger here too long, Wild Card." Stayne begrudgingly warned. "Her Highness still expects to see you for her afternoon tea. I suggest you make your way there now else you'll only be giving me the pleasure of dragging you there myself."

With a flick of his wrists and the whip of the reins Stayne took off with billowing clouds of dust following his wake. Jack stood there glaring after Stayne, ears pumping full of anger he did not hear the cracking of the piece of table he was holding. When Stayne finally left there was still plenty of tension built within Jack that when he turned back to the tea partiers the end of the table he held splintered off in his grasp. The Hare nearly fainted at the act and caused the Hatter to laugh.

"Well, look at that," the Hatter clapped his hands, having been impressed. "Looks like I need a new table!"

Malley pouted with crossed arms, "I liked that table!"

He heaved heavy breaths as he released the table and plopped down in a chair. "Sorry." Diamond eventually prickled away, and the Heart reappeared on his face and he felt exhausted now that all the tension was gone; it was still far too early to rest though.

"You're much stronger than you appear, Jack," The Cheshire Cat grinned as he vaporated beside him. "I thought you were about to rip off the Knave's face you were so feral."

"Had he given me any reason to, I would have," he slumped back in his seat and watched the Hatter pull the tea pot out from under the table and placed it gently on the table.

"Just like he's snooping about looking for any reason to get rid of you it seems," his large eyes turned in the direction that Stayne left. "They will have to circle back eventually. . ."

"I know," He grimaced and pulled his hat over his eyes. "I'll start moving in the other direction soon."

The Hatter removed the lid from the teapot, before slamming down quickly. If he could have blushed under all the white paint on his face, he probably would have been beaten red. He quickly grabbed a tuft of the fabric from within the teapot and began fiddling and twisting and stitching the fabric into a tiny dress before dropping it back into the teapot. When he sat up he locked eyes with Jack, gave a smile and a wave before lifting the lid and it took Jack biting his lips not to squeal at how adorable Alice had looked upon emerging from the teapot; especially the way her eyes lit up when she saw that Jack hadn't left yet. The Hatter assisted her out of the teapot and set her feet on the top of the table and narrowed his eyes as he looked over his handiwork.

"I like it," he said decidedly with a nod of approval.

"Thank you," she nodded her thanks before turning and looking at Jack. Teacup sized Alice was even more adorable than doll sized Alice; though her normal height was still his favorite. Her eyes were solely on him and Jack wanted nothing more than to scoop her up in his hands and tell her how cute she looked, but instead broke away first.

He pushed himself from the table, "I should go before they come back."

"Must you really go, friend?" The Hatter twitched as he watched Jack make his way around the table and to the windmill house. Jack could feel Alice's tiny gaze on him, and he did everything he could not to look at her. If he looked at her now with that pleading look on her face he would never leave Underland. He couldn't let his resolve break, not yet, he needed to make sure that things were somehow set right in the Anti-Realm and he had to go now. The windmill house was the closest door for miles, and it would be the fastest way for him to leave and come back again.

Before he returned to the Queen of Hearts in Underland to seal his fate and what he had to do here, he needed to return to the Anti-Realm to make sure some things were set right. He hadn't returned in a few days and quite a lot had happened, he needed to check in with Ms. Scatter, Tres, and the Queen of Hearts there; he only hoped they wouldn't find a way to lock him out of Underland while he was gone.

"I must," he nodded and did his best not to look at Alice, lest he lose his resolve. "I trust Alice in your care."

"Of course!" The Hatter stood and walked over to Jack. In an odd air of seriousness that took Jack completely off guard. His almost glowing big green eyes stared into Jack all the way into his soul before he finally smiled. "I would like to offer a word of caution, my friend. Be sure you stay safe, if you're not careful and play your Cards just right your luck will run out."

There was something in the way the Hatter spoke that made Jack wonder just what sorts of things his mad mind knew. It was a warning he was offering, that much was obvious, but there was something almost very pointing towards the Cards that he had in his coat pocket that suddenly weighed very heavily rather than the slips of paper they were. Jack reached out and patted the Hatter's shoulder.

Jack gave him a side-long look before turning on his heel and heading towards the windmill house, "I will do my best, Hatter."

He had to clench his hands to hold onto his resolve as he forced himself to turn away from Alice. Though he did not look at her directly he was still able to see the desperate plea that she wanted to make of him; she wanted him to stay and he did too. Instead he marched towards the door of the windmill house, flung it open with a quick demand for fast travelling and stepped through.

The world around him went white before dimming into a deep gray before ultimately turning black. When he took a step forward, lights from the stained-glass floor lit up as he stepped out of his door from Underland and entered the Anti-Realm. Although he was in a Wardrobe with other Doors to other Realms, it was very cold now that he had left Underland. Perhaps it was the fast traveling that did it, but he felt extraordinarily empty and put his hand over his heart to make sure it still beat in his chest; it did which was good, but he felt terribly lonely.

He had known what it was like to be lonely since being raised by the Queen of Hearts. He was allowed to see fellow servants, Court Members, and even Card Soldiers but rarely was he allowed to develop a friendship outside of the Queen's watchful and vengeful eye. Though he hated Underland more than anyone else he had made many companions there, and especially with Alice there, he was reminded of how lonely he was. With Alice in the picture, though, it was a different sort of loneliness that he was not familiar with. There was a deeper ache in his heart that made the abundantly huge Wardrobe seem infinite in its depths and that much more alone. Clutching the Ruby Heart portkey around his neck he left the Wardrobe and took a deep breath of the damp and dank the Anti-Realm had to offer.

The damp and dank was oddly welcoming, but not as welcoming as the smell of food being served for dinner. He dared to look at the grandfather clock and saw that it was eight past six in the evening and he was already late for dinner. Hopefully the Hosts wouldn't mind him being a few minutes late. With a rumbling in his stomach and a head that needed to be cleared he went to the dining hall to enjoy a meal with his fellow Recruits.

Author's Note:

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

I know this is another short chapter, and I'm trying not to make them so short (I say short even though it is 6000+ words), but I feel as though there has been a lot to unpack for this story that needs to be properly spaced out. Please remember to leave a comment or review and tell me what you think. I love the feedback.

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

Ko-fi/SarahtheWriter