Summary – Bringing it to a close.

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Not What it Seems

Tommy

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Staring is disbelief, I don't even know how to react to this. "You're, you're-"

"Tommy, come on bro, Tom, come on come back to us." As the whispered voices invade my suddenly aching head, I clench my eyes shut and try to will the sudden flare of pain away. God what is that?!

"Tommy, I think he's coming back, Tommy come on hang in there for us." What is that?! Dropping to my knees, I'm vaguely surprised to feel the floor is no longer hard and cold, but very soft and comfortable. Lay down, I need to lay down before I pass out. Jase help me…

"He's coming around." Too much noise. How can whispers be so loud?

"That a boy, come on stay with us this time. We don't want to loss you again…give him another shot of the serum." Jason?

"Come on Tommy, open your eyes for us." What? Zack?

Forcing my eyes open, I try to see through the blinding light that's around me. Geez, bright lights and a migraine do not mix. Where am I? What happened to the thrown room? Am I on a bed? "J-Jase?"

"Yeah, I'm right here, bro. Come on stay with us." As my eyes start to focus somewhat to the lighting, I see I'm in my chambers at the Command Center. What the hell am I doing here? Sitting next to me on my bed, Jase quickly gives me a shot of something blue, before handing the empty syringe back to Billy. Ow, what was that?

"Bright, too bright." Will someone please turn down the lights and then tell me what's going on?

"Okay, just stay still." Hurrying to the light switch, Kim quickly puts the dimmer on and lowers the harshness of the ceiling lights to a soft glow. Much better. Still a little too bright, but definitely more tolerable then before.

Turning a little on my side, I bite back a yelp as my apparently bruised ribs come into pressured contact with the mattress. "What happened? How did we get here?" What the hell happened to the palace?

Easing me back onto my back, Jason is trying to be as gentle as he can, but still manages to hit a soar spot on my stomach accidentally. "Easy, you have to take it easy for a little while, bro. You're not hurt that bad, but you took a really hard hit from that monster's energy blast." Energy blast?

"But how did we get here? I mean how did we get out of the story?" I don't remember being teleported back here. I didn't defeat anyone or anything, so how did we get back?

Exchanging looks with each other, they seem to be either really worried, or trying not to laugh at me. I don't like those looks. Finally Jason seems to decide to go for it. "Tommy we destroyed the monster after you were hit, then we teleported you back here and we've been looking after you for about three hours now…What story?" What? No, no, see that isn't what happened, we…I mean…oh man.

"I…we got put in the story…we…I just…we were in the story 'Alice in Wonderland' Rita sent us there." Closing my eyes, I try to figure out just how real that dream must have been. I know we were there. We had to be. It was too real.

Moving next to Jason, Zack seems to be gong for a sympathetic look, but isn't pulling it off very well. "Um, you were asleep, here, the whole time, Tommy. We thought you were coming around once or twice before, but you never really did. We were getting really worried, when you just came around. Bro, it was just a dream." No it wasn't. I know it wasn't. Too real, far too real. Maybe they just don't remember. That's possible right? I mean…okay so it was a dream and I'm acting crazy.

"Oh, okay." Turning away from them, I just want them to go away for a little while. It just seemed so real.

"Tommy, extravagant dreams are very common when under a lot of strain. The subconscious does that so that you won't feel the pain you're in. Also the serum we gave you has some side effects that probably helped it along." That's great Billy, please go away now.

"K, I'm gonna sleep some more now." I am such a dork. When I hear them all sigh and slowly leave, I breathe a little shaky breath. It was a dream, all that and it was just a dream. Okay so I said I wanted to come home and all, but still it's just a little disappointing I went through all that and it wasn't even real.

"Hey. Come on talk to me." Jase, I thought you left. Figures he won't listen. Didn't listen in my dream world either.

"G'away." I don't want to talk about my little heroic dream, okay.

Moving to sit back down on the bed, this time on the other side, which I've rolled onto, he sighs and begins brushing my hair back out of my flushed face. "Come on, tell me about your dream. I promise I won't make fun." Yeah right. I'll be the laughing stock of the team.

"No."

"Why not? Please. At least tell me what character I was." Sigh, he's not going to go away until I do, is he? Probably not. Well I guess it won't hurt to just tell him that.

"The Cheshire Cat." Now go away so I can lay here in quiet and stare at the wall. I really should decorate my room like the others have. I've been here long enough I guess that I should see this as my room and put a little décor up.

"Really?" The pleased tone in his voice makes me look up at him curiously. You like that? Well, I guess you were kind of cool as the annoying Cheshire Cat. "Who were the others?" Well he is listening and he does seem to want to hear it. I guess there's no harm in telling him.

"Kim was a sort of a Playboy bunny version of the white rabbit. Trini was the Duchess, she threw you in jail once. Billy was the Caterpillar, you threatened to claw his eyes out. Zack was the Mad Hatter, Tweedledum and Tweedledee where Bulk and Skull, and Humpty Dumpty was Mrs. Applebee." When he begins laughing, I can't help but smile and inch a little closer to him. So you don't think I'm nuts right?

"Humpty Dumpty was Mrs. Applebee?! Well that is certainly a mental image I won't soon forget." Grinning, he leans back against the pillows and headboard, threading his fingers through my hair. That's really nice, I'll tell you more if you keep doing that. "So, who were you?" Okay I don't want to tell you that.

Still though, if I keep talking he'll keep soothing my headache like he is. Looking away, I begin absently picking at a loss thread on my blanket. "Um, Alice." When he begins to laugh again, I smack his leg fairly hard. "S'not funny, I had to wear the dress and everything."

Now going into a hysteric fit of laughter, he's so asking for trouble. "Oh man, okay, I'm sorry, I'm not laughing at you, I'm laughing with you." I'm not laughing smart-ass.

"Yeah whatever, you just laugh it up." Okay so it's a little funny, but that's beside the point. I've just been through a seriously traumatic event here and I do not find it so amusing…okay so just a little. "You all are never gonna let me live this down are you?"

Smiling, he shakes his head. "Naw, don't worry about it. Once when Kim was knocked out she dreamed she was the little mermaid. Sang 'Under the Sea' in her sleep for like two hours…oh and you are never allowed to tell her that I told you that." Too late, have to now. Suddenly he goes a tad more serious though. "Are you okay though, I mean really, are you feeling okay?"

"Been better, but at least I still have my head, right?" Yawning and stretching the stiffness out of my muscles, I settle down to take another nap. Whatever they gave me in that shot must have had some type of sedative to it, I so need more sleep.

"True…sleep bro. I'll call your parents and tell them you're spending the night at my place." Thanks. Pausing for a moment, I feel him gently nudge me. "Um, Tommy, just one more thing. Who was the Red Queen? Rita?"

Snickering, I try to keep my laughter from erupting out of my throat. "No, not Rita." He's never gonna get this.

Sitting back down, I open my eyes a bit to see him looking thoughtful. "Um…was it-"

Pushing myself up, I wrap my arms around his neck and give him a playful kiss on the cheek. "You'd never believe me if I told you, cat boy."

The End