II. The Downfall of the White Rabbit
So warm..the sun..a slow smile of satisfaction spread across Alice's face as she watched the cards in Rio's hands droop and her eyes close as she slid down into the grass. Alice was mildly aware of the same thing happening to her. Then sleep took her and for a while all was quiet. Suddenly Alice was awakened by the sound of running feet. Yawning, Alice sat up and stretched. Then she looked for the owner of said feet. A small animal in ridiculous looking Renaissance-like clothing covered in red hearts ran by her to a rather large tree that Alice hadn't noticed before. Or hadn't noticed since last year. It was the white rabbit! The one who'd gotten her into all this. The one who'd woken her up the first time, and roused her curiosity because of the fact that most rabbits don't wear clothes or carry trumpets. Alice's face, at first simply excited looking at her plan working, now held a sadistic grin. He'd be the first one to pay, that simpering loser.
Like before he raced on without noticing her until he reached the tree. Alice had stood up by now and started to walk after him. No more scampering, she had an hour and they were in her clutches now. The rabbit turned his head as he started climbing into the rabbit hole and noticed her. "You again? Can't you just grow up?" He groused. He regained his composure; he had been expecting to lure some other silly little girl down the hole. Then he noticed something that disturbed him even more. "Aren't you going to chase me?" A puzzled expression rose to his face. This wasn't the way it was supposed to happen, and certainly she was not supposed to go through this twice. When his questions evoked no response, he started getting even more nervous. Silly little girls did not act this way. And that look on her face.. somehow these actions scared him more than the Queen. The Queen was so over the top, she screamed and shouted and made threats. Yet in the end she ended up doing nothing. Alice's actions were quiet and determined. The look on her face was not that of a three year old having a temper tantrum, not of a silly young girl. The look she had was adult-like, but still not that of a well-balanced, responsible individual. She had the look of a demented psychopath, unstable and willing to do things that no little girl or normal adult would consider even for a moment.
Half-crazed with fear the White Rabbit flew down the rabbit hole at three times his normal speed; so fast in fact that he tripped over himself and fell so fast and so out of control that he landed in a crumpled, bruised heap at the bottom. Still terror-filled but believing that he was safe for the moment, he slowly tried to sit up and assess the damage. He wiped his face and noticed that his nose was bleeding. One ear was bent and his clothes were ripped up. Everything felt bruised. His right leg burned like fire. Gingerly he tried to move it and it felt like someone had covered his leg in gasoline and blowtorched it. Yep, it was broken alright, no doubt about it. Now he had no idea what he was going to do. How could he walk, let alone run, when his right leg was out of commission? Just then he heard a soft, swish swish sound. Alarmed he looked up, but saw nothing. Now his fear returned with a vengeance. He had to get out of here, find refuge. Then he could worry about his leg. Right now the Queen would have to wait. Then he started. What a strange thought, one he had never thought he'd have. Even if the Queen never really did execute anyone no one liked crossing her either. Still, he had to get out of there and there was no point thinking about that now if he wanted to be around to be yelled at by the Queen. Curiouser and curiouser this day was becoming. He heard the sound again and that got him going. He crawled slowly towards some bushes, his only hope for now.
When he heard the gentle swish swish a third time he had to look up. His eyes become round, wide, and panic filled. She was flying down the rabbit hole at top speed, staying directly in the center, not bashing into things as he had done. Most frightening of all was the small knife she held in her teeth and the crazed look in her eye. She must have had the knife hidden in the pocket of her apron, there was no other explanation he could think of for the sudden appearance of the knife. He struggled, trying to run, even with his broken leg. The panic had blocked out the pain. Alice landed behind him with an audible thwmp. The knife was out of her mouth and into her hand as she landed and she started walking slowly towards him. He scrambled as fast as he could toward the bushes. He had no real plans now, didn't know whether or not he'd be protected by the bush or just sentencing himself to death. His mind had gone blank seconds after he saw her and the knife falling. When she hit the ground a sort of explosion went off in his head and his only thoughts were to get away, Get Away, GET AWAY!!! His mind screamed at him and he didn't realize he was also screaming aloud. A wordless, mindless, panic-stricken scream. A hand roughly grabbed him by the ears and swung his squirming body into the air. His scream turned into a high, keening whine but at the sound of her voice he froze in terror. "Well, it looks as if I've caught a rabbit." Her voice was eerily calm, yet it held a note that suggested she was not quite sane. "Whatever shall I do with it?" She seemed to think, and for a moment she looked normal. He almost started to hope that this whole thing was a dreadful mistake, that she simply was coming to thank wonderland for making her an adult and that his imagination had cooked up the rest. From the shock of her return, yes of course that must be it. He actually started to calm down before the thought was squashed like a bug is under the heel of black patent leather shoes. "Why, I know" she said, the odd note back in her voice, "I'll GUT IT!" With these words shouted she pulled back the hand with the knife. He started screaming again only to have it turn into a sort of mewling noise as she plunged the knife into his stomach and slit him open. "You always must gut and skin a rabbit before cooking and eating it." Alice said, sounding very detached from herself. Her eyes were wild and crazy. The White Rabbit neither saw nor heard her, he would no longer pull a large pocket watch out and shout, "I'm late! For a very important date!" He was dead, and so was the annoying rhyme. Alice, her hands and arms covered with blood, cut off one of his feet and then dropped the rest on the ground. She wiped the blood on the knife off onto her apron and then stuck it back into her pocket. "A lucky rabbits foot." She said in the same, detached way, and then put the foot in her pocket and continued on her way. There were others who needed to pay for what they had done too her.
So warm..the sun..a slow smile of satisfaction spread across Alice's face as she watched the cards in Rio's hands droop and her eyes close as she slid down into the grass. Alice was mildly aware of the same thing happening to her. Then sleep took her and for a while all was quiet. Suddenly Alice was awakened by the sound of running feet. Yawning, Alice sat up and stretched. Then she looked for the owner of said feet. A small animal in ridiculous looking Renaissance-like clothing covered in red hearts ran by her to a rather large tree that Alice hadn't noticed before. Or hadn't noticed since last year. It was the white rabbit! The one who'd gotten her into all this. The one who'd woken her up the first time, and roused her curiosity because of the fact that most rabbits don't wear clothes or carry trumpets. Alice's face, at first simply excited looking at her plan working, now held a sadistic grin. He'd be the first one to pay, that simpering loser.
Like before he raced on without noticing her until he reached the tree. Alice had stood up by now and started to walk after him. No more scampering, she had an hour and they were in her clutches now. The rabbit turned his head as he started climbing into the rabbit hole and noticed her. "You again? Can't you just grow up?" He groused. He regained his composure; he had been expecting to lure some other silly little girl down the hole. Then he noticed something that disturbed him even more. "Aren't you going to chase me?" A puzzled expression rose to his face. This wasn't the way it was supposed to happen, and certainly she was not supposed to go through this twice. When his questions evoked no response, he started getting even more nervous. Silly little girls did not act this way. And that look on her face.. somehow these actions scared him more than the Queen. The Queen was so over the top, she screamed and shouted and made threats. Yet in the end she ended up doing nothing. Alice's actions were quiet and determined. The look on her face was not that of a three year old having a temper tantrum, not of a silly young girl. The look she had was adult-like, but still not that of a well-balanced, responsible individual. She had the look of a demented psychopath, unstable and willing to do things that no little girl or normal adult would consider even for a moment.
Half-crazed with fear the White Rabbit flew down the rabbit hole at three times his normal speed; so fast in fact that he tripped over himself and fell so fast and so out of control that he landed in a crumpled, bruised heap at the bottom. Still terror-filled but believing that he was safe for the moment, he slowly tried to sit up and assess the damage. He wiped his face and noticed that his nose was bleeding. One ear was bent and his clothes were ripped up. Everything felt bruised. His right leg burned like fire. Gingerly he tried to move it and it felt like someone had covered his leg in gasoline and blowtorched it. Yep, it was broken alright, no doubt about it. Now he had no idea what he was going to do. How could he walk, let alone run, when his right leg was out of commission? Just then he heard a soft, swish swish sound. Alarmed he looked up, but saw nothing. Now his fear returned with a vengeance. He had to get out of here, find refuge. Then he could worry about his leg. Right now the Queen would have to wait. Then he started. What a strange thought, one he had never thought he'd have. Even if the Queen never really did execute anyone no one liked crossing her either. Still, he had to get out of there and there was no point thinking about that now if he wanted to be around to be yelled at by the Queen. Curiouser and curiouser this day was becoming. He heard the sound again and that got him going. He crawled slowly towards some bushes, his only hope for now.
When he heard the gentle swish swish a third time he had to look up. His eyes become round, wide, and panic filled. She was flying down the rabbit hole at top speed, staying directly in the center, not bashing into things as he had done. Most frightening of all was the small knife she held in her teeth and the crazed look in her eye. She must have had the knife hidden in the pocket of her apron, there was no other explanation he could think of for the sudden appearance of the knife. He struggled, trying to run, even with his broken leg. The panic had blocked out the pain. Alice landed behind him with an audible thwmp. The knife was out of her mouth and into her hand as she landed and she started walking slowly towards him. He scrambled as fast as he could toward the bushes. He had no real plans now, didn't know whether or not he'd be protected by the bush or just sentencing himself to death. His mind had gone blank seconds after he saw her and the knife falling. When she hit the ground a sort of explosion went off in his head and his only thoughts were to get away, Get Away, GET AWAY!!! His mind screamed at him and he didn't realize he was also screaming aloud. A wordless, mindless, panic-stricken scream. A hand roughly grabbed him by the ears and swung his squirming body into the air. His scream turned into a high, keening whine but at the sound of her voice he froze in terror. "Well, it looks as if I've caught a rabbit." Her voice was eerily calm, yet it held a note that suggested she was not quite sane. "Whatever shall I do with it?" She seemed to think, and for a moment she looked normal. He almost started to hope that this whole thing was a dreadful mistake, that she simply was coming to thank wonderland for making her an adult and that his imagination had cooked up the rest. From the shock of her return, yes of course that must be it. He actually started to calm down before the thought was squashed like a bug is under the heel of black patent leather shoes. "Why, I know" she said, the odd note back in her voice, "I'll GUT IT!" With these words shouted she pulled back the hand with the knife. He started screaming again only to have it turn into a sort of mewling noise as she plunged the knife into his stomach and slit him open. "You always must gut and skin a rabbit before cooking and eating it." Alice said, sounding very detached from herself. Her eyes were wild and crazy. The White Rabbit neither saw nor heard her, he would no longer pull a large pocket watch out and shout, "I'm late! For a very important date!" He was dead, and so was the annoying rhyme. Alice, her hands and arms covered with blood, cut off one of his feet and then dropped the rest on the ground. She wiped the blood on the knife off onto her apron and then stuck it back into her pocket. "A lucky rabbits foot." She said in the same, detached way, and then put the foot in her pocket and continued on her way. There were others who needed to pay for what they had done too her.
