Author's Notes: Well, this was very unexpected…I meant this as a short, clean, one chapter story. But thanks to all those nice reviews, I think I'll write another installment of 'Toys in the Attic'. Oh I don't own Alice or Cheshire or anyone else that joins in. Warning: Cheshire goes a little OOC so just bare with me…it goes somewhere, promise. I think I've had enough rambling space, so on with the story!

Toys in the Attic

'Illusions'

Alice? Alice, wake up…

Alice softly moaned as she started to come out of her dream. That has to be the weirdest one I've had. She stopped stretching when she felt a cold hand on her cheek.

"Are you alright, Child?"

"Cheshire?" She opened her eyes, and instead of seeing the Cheshire cat, she was staring into a young boy's red eyes. A soft gasp escaped her lips as she started to scoot backwards away from the boy. When she hit a wall, she looked at the boy. "Wha- who are you?"

"I would have thought you would have recognized me child." The boy tilted his head, black shaggy hair covering his face, leaving only a grin to be seen.

Alice leaned forward a little. "Kitten?"

He nodded, smiling at her.

"If you are the Cheshire, then why do you look so worried?"

"You were screaming while you slept. That would worry anyone." He paused to collect his thoughts. "What caused you to scream?"

Alice just looked at him trying to make sure that it was him, The hoop earring, black tattoos, it has to be him. I'll tell him, but not everything. "I had a dream that I was normal, that my life wasn't ruined by the fire. But then this life caught up with me. I got killed, then you got killed."

Cheshire just looked at her and frowned. "You're not telling me all. You're hiding the deeper meaning to what frightened you."

A look of confusion passed over her features. "Did you just frown at me?"

Shock came to his face as he stood up. "That has nothing to do with what I asked you."

She stood up, walking towards him. "You have no right to know that which is not your business."

He quickly strode over to her with all the grace of his cat form. It made no difference to him that he was now pinning her up against the wall with his hand on her lower neck. "It is my 'business', Alice, to know what scared you like that. You see child, fear and ignorance are the things that get one killed in this place. And if I don't know what was scaring you, I can't protect you from that fear."

Alice brought her hands up to push him away from her, but he wouldn't budge. "I'm not going to tell you! You have no right to know!"

Cheshire put more pressure to her neck, causing a slight yelp from Alice. "You will tell me, Child." He brought his face to look into her eyes, "Because if you don't, you will be on your own from here on out."

Anger was now etched on her face and fire blazed in her eyes, I've had enough of this, if he wants to know, he'll hear it whether he wants to or not!  She swung her arm up, slapping his arm from her neck, and shoved him away from her. "Do you really want to know what made me scream in fear? Well, I'll tell you, Kitten," she practically spit out the name. She started to stalk up to him slowly, her blade drawn out and her knuckles white from how tightly she was holding the handle. "Before I was forced back into this hellish realm, a Diamond Guard stabbed me. I started to fall; you caught me and laid me out on the ground. And as I was starting to slip, you told me that I couldn't leave you because you loved me. The thing that made me scream happened after this," She had finally got up to him and placed the tip of the blade on his chest. "The last words that came out of my mouth were 'I love you too'. Then that same damned Guard came and killed you too, and you died cradling my body."

He just stood there in shock. How could she have found out? I've never told her anything! "Was I in this form?"

She just sneered at him and nodded, "That's why I didn't believe it was you. I've never seen you in this form."

Cheshire started to laugh as she lowered her blade to her side. "And you believe this, 'dream'? I expected more of you, Alice."

Alice just stared into his eyes, the brief insanity leaving her drained. A tear that started to fall from her eye never made it past the corner, she wiped it away. She turned away from him, "I knew it was too much to hope for. I knew no one could ever love me."

He stared in silence as she ran from the crossroads into Queensland. He looked down and saw that a card had dropped from her pocket, the Ace of hearts. Writing?

On the back of the card were a couple of sentences: Why can't true love ever find me? I've found mine, but he will never know. I wish to make him forget about saving this lost cause. I wish he would love me like I love him, but no, I'm the 'savior' of this crazy would. When I find the Queen, she'll wish that she never touched this realm.

"Alice…She can't protect herself in this state." He started to run in the same direction that Alice went, the card still in his hand.

****************

Alice stood in the middle of what looked like a massacre. The body parts of the different Card Guards that had dared to touch her were strewn all over the clearing, their blood dripped off both the leaves of the hedges and her blade. She started to laugh as she slumped down, 'Fear and ignorance get one killed', please!

A grunt from in front of her caused her too look up into the eyes of a lone Diamond Guard. As she franticly tried to get up, she noticed that, unlike the others, this one was aiming to kill.

Alice closed her eyes as the Guard raised the pike, this it is I guess…but the blow never came. She looked up and saw that the Guard was staring at the sky, and as it fell back, she noticed that what brought it down was a single card in its forehead.

Leaning over the body, she plucked the card from the corpse and looked at it. The ace of hearts? I thought I got rid of that card.

The noise of someone laughing came down to her ears. She jumped up, blade ready for a fight. "Relax, Child. I won't hurt you." The Cheshire Cat jumped down to the blood soaked ground and walked over to Alice, curling around her ankles.

"Leave me alone, Kitten. I'm in no mood for your antics right now." Alice looked down and kicked him away from her. She started to walk off when a hand stopped her.

"I can't let you get your self killed." Cheshire smiled as she turned around to face him. "Although, considering how you've been treating me, I should just let you go."

"Then why didn't you let me go?"

He pointed to the card in her hand. "The reason is on that card."

Alice wrenched her self out of his grasp. Her face flushed as she shook the card in his face. "You have no right to read what I write on my cards."

Cheshire grinned at her and plucked the card from her hand. "Well, I thought I could, since it pertained to me."

All color left her face. "H-how did you find it?"

"It fell out of your pocket. By the way," he paused, a grin coming to his face, "do you write on all of your cards?"

Alice snatched the card from him and turned away. "That's none of your business." She looked down to clean her blade on her apron, and when she looked back up, she was looking into a pair of deep red eyes.

"Leaving so soon Alice?" Cheshire brought up a hand to gently grab her chin. "I think not." His grin left as he felt her blade next to his throat.

"I'd let go if I were you, Kitten."

"And again I must say," he brought his other hand to grab her wrist and force the blade by her side, "I think not."

A look of slight fear came to her eyes. "What are you going to do?"

 "Just something you've deserved for coming this far," he purred. Cheshire lightly smiled as he brought Alice's face towards his, giving her a light kiss.

Alice's eyes got as big as dinner plates as she realized what was happening. Her grasp on the blade loosened and it clattered to the ground. She brought up her free hand to push him away, but he let go of her wrist to put his arm around her waist, pulling her closer. Why am I fighting? Isn't this what I've always wanted?

She brought her right arm up to wrap it around his neck, returning the kiss with a force that scared her.

After the kiss ended, Alice sat down and pulled out her deck of cards. Cheshire bent down to pick up the blade she dropped, and when he clasped the handle a startled look came to his face.

Alice looked up from her cards, "What's wrong?"

"This blade, it's…strange."

For the first time, Alice laughed. "That's because only I can use the blade."

"Oh." Cheshire looked down at the blade and offered Alice the hilt.

She stood up and took the blade from him. He yelped lightly as the blade bit into his skin, small drops of blood falling to the ground. After she shoved the blade into one of her pockets, she gently held his hand, looking at the cut. "Did it hurt you?"

He took back his hand, "It's alright." He looked at her and noticed that she was giving him a weird look. "What?"

"You've stopped making riddles."

"…"

Alice brought up a hand to stifle a yawn. "I think it's time for some sleep."

Cheshire looked at her in shock as she sat down and stretched out on the ground. "You sleep unprotected?"

She patted to a spot next to her and he sat down. "Well, I'll just say that they tried to attack me once while I was sleeping and none of them saw the light of another dawn."

"Oh."

Alice sat up, "Now there's something on your mind Kitten."

Cheshire looked at her apron that she set aside. "It's just that," he looked back at her, "Has it ever hurt you?"

She closed her eyes, "Sometimes. When there's nothing around to sate its thirst."

"Where?"

"What?" She opened her eyes and looked at him. "I'm getting a hint that you are actually concerned about me."

Cheshire opened his mouth like he was about to say something, then shut it, looking away from Alice's mocking eyes.

"God…" She sat up and bends down, looking into his face, "You actually are worried…"

"…"

Alice laughed slightly and leaned back, "Who would have guessed."

He looked up and gave her a light smile. "I was hoping you would, Alice."

A blank look came to her face as she leaned back onto the ground. "Do you still want to know where it's cut me?"

Cheshire laid down on his side propping himself up on his elbow. "Yes."

"I'll need some help then." Alice sat up and started to undo the back of her dress, only getting a few buttons down.

He sat up, reaching a hand to the back of her dress, but stopped.

Alice looked over her shoulder at him, "I'm not going to bite kitten."

A look of determination came to his face as he started to unbutton her dress. "I'm not scared of you," he said more for his own sake than for Alice's. He was using so much concentration to finish, that when he looked at her back, all the color left his face.

Her back was etched with scars. Most were old, looking like they had been there for months. Others, however, were more recent, still red from healing. From the way that some were on her side, it looked like there might even be some on her front side, but he wasn't about to ask.

He reached out and gently touched one of the scars. "It gave you all of these?"

She scooted around to face him, pulling the front of her dress up to her collarbone. "Most. Some were just to keep me from going insane."

"Oh." After a long pause, Cheshire looked into Alice's face. "Is anything the matter?"

Alice looked slightly confused for the first time in what seemed like ages. "I have this urge to do something…but it wouldn't be proper." Who cares about proper? Just do it!

Cheshire cocked an eyebrow. "When has anything you have done been proper?"

"I guess you have a point, kitten."  She leaned forward hesitantly and lightly kissed him. I'm just repaying him for helping me…

****************

Alice woke up on the hard ground with an aching back. She put her arms over her head and stretched every muscle like a cat would. I've never felt this good before…She sat up and noticed that she was dressed but shrugged it off. A smile came to her face, "I wonder where Cheshire is?"

She got up and looked at the darkening skyline of Queen's land. Wait…it had just gotten dark. What's going on here?

A faint shout caused her to turn around, "Alice!"

She looked to the sound and saw the Cheshire cat running towards her. A confused look came to her face when he didn't stop running, but when straight through her, like she was air.

"Alice, where are you!"

The light got darker and started to waver around her as some Card Guards ran through her, silently chasing the Cheshire Cat.

"Kitten!" She started to run after the Cat and Cards with her blade out, but the wavers in the light lifted, revealing a cold stonewall.

She skidded to a stop just before hitting the wall at a full run. A cruel laugh from behind her almost caused her heart to stop.

"Did you enjoy that Alice?"

Alice slowly turned around, blade gripped in anger, and looked straight into the eyes of the Queen of Hearts.

"Oh can't you take a little fun, child?"

"A little what?" Alice backed up to get away from the thing that had caused her so much pain, but ended up backing up into the wall behind her.

"That dream, that illusion, that momentary wish of grandeur finally being fulfilled. That fun." By now the Queen had a cruel smile etched on her face. She brought up a hand and dark reddish energy swirled in the air above it. "Do you really think that fling of yours could ever be real? But now your misery can finally be ended." And with that, the energy left from the Queen's hand and Alice's vision went black as death.

To be continued…

A/N: Well….finally have another one finished. Sorry it took sooooooo long, but you just have to have the right 'Alice mood' in order to write this kinda story. Sorry for that bad ending I didn't mean for it to come out like that. But for the last two chapters…I will try to make it up. Oh I'm also sorry for taking liberties for how Alice met the Queen…didn't want to spoil the entire thing, now did I?