Chapter Two: And so I came upon a Hatter

As I trekked through the mushroom forest, I came upon another. This forest however, was not like the mushroom forest I just recently exited. It was more like normal forest from my homeland, with assorted trees and brush. I soon found a path into the forest, and began to follow it through rather quickly. Though I traveled the path, I did become most lost, with every little step. It was, as if, the path had lost itself through the vast area. I heaved a normal and frequent heavy sigh.

"Wonderful, another queer place, with possibly another batch of the queerest bunch to ever be gazed upon," I said to myself quietly.

I closed my eyes, and walked through the forest as such, until I collided with something. I was knocked back to the ground and I looked up to see what or who I happen to hit. It was a being of some kind I suppose, and this being had friends.

"Good day my fair lady, how doth one get to be in your position," said the character I had collided with. He appeared to be a hatter of sorts I suppose; for he wore just the oddest hat I had ever gazed upon. It was a large purple top-hat, with a card sticking from the lavender band in the middle. He extended a hand, and greeted me with a smile, and he pulled me from my place upon the ground.

"Thank you," I said to the hatter

"There's no need for apologies here, I presume? Yet, I shan't leave with out kind introduction," the hatter said quietly then removed his hat and bowed, "Thy name is Conrad Hatter. People say I'm mad, so you shall know-eth me as the Mad Hatter." The Mad Hatter grinned and motioned the being next to him to introduce itself.

I looked at the being next to the Hatter. His friend appeared to be a man of fair stature, with shaggy hair. But there was also something strange about this companion. The companion had rabbit ears protruding from the top of his head; from his rear, a small and fluffy rabbit-like tail. I tugged on the companion's ears for a moment.

"Pardon miss, but those happen to be my ears," the companion said in a slightly irritated tone. I removed my hands from what they were doing to his ears.

"Oh, do please forgive my hands. They have insecurities beyond what I know of," I said to him with a slight bow.

"Twas no real problem. Alas, I shall now introduce myself for it is out fear of my friend I do this. My name is March Hare, the March Hare to be precise. Alas, people think I am quite mad as well," the companion said with a quite a grin.

The Hatter nodded and made a gesture to the Hare. The March Hare then reached behind himself, and pulled what look like a mouse-like man, who appeared to be a-sleep.

"This," the Hatter began to say then paused for a moment, then continued "is a Dormouse, our Dormouse to be exact. Surprisingly, he's also our resident narcoleptic of Wonderland." The Hatter grinned again and the Hare did the same. They began to laugh like fools filled with merriment. The Dormouse blinked into a wake, and looked about in a sleepy manner. I could see clearly now, his facial characteristics. He had eyes filled with sleep, and glasses such as mine. His hair was short, shaggy, and only some-what kept in a nice manner. On the top of his head, quite like the Hare, were his big round mouse ears that twitched to every little sound. The Dormouse then made an odd noise, and fell back into his coma-like sleep.

"What a queer bunch of companions," I said to myself in a quite tone. I then began to think about the many things I had come across until I heard the Hatter speak.

"Now miss," the Hatter said to me, and I perked up to his words "who, are you?" Now this I thought about, for at the moment, I was not quite sure of who I was. For I obviously was not the same me I came about seeing this morning. But who else could I be? I had no friends or relatives, nor acquaintances of any sort, but I was definitely not the original me. So I thought a-while longer until I finally had an answer to the Hatter's question.

"I," I said and paused "am Alice I suppose. If this is Wonderland, I must be Alice, Alice the Hippy." I thought over the answer I had given and found it quite logical. The Hatter clapped and smiled wide.

"Alice! You have returned us then!" the Hatter said with glee "It has been years beloved Alice and you have changed with them all."

"What do you mean I have returned. I was never here to begin with," I said to the Hatter in a slight state of confusion. The Hatter blinked at me.

"Do you not remember? I suppose you might not," the Hatter said in his matter-of-fact fashion.

Now his companion, the Hare, at this point seemed as confused as I. The Hare looked at the Hatter with his head cocked to one side. The Hare then spoke to Hatter.

"Hatter," the Hare said to his companion formally, "I don't believe that I'm currently knowledgeable on the subject at hand either." The Hatter patted the Hare on the back roughly.

"My friend, this is Alice. Alice from long ago, the Alice who stumbled upon Wonderland as a child," the Hatter said to the Hare. The Hare stared at the Hatter, confused for a moment and then eyes became wide.

"You mean, THE ALICE, the little girl with sun-sweetened hair, and eyes of stormy blue?" The Hare said in a drastic tone. The Hatter simply gave a slight nod, with wide grin.

Now, the Dormouse had re-awakened himself to the world about him. The Dormouse then stood up by himself and began to quote a poem:

"Her hair, a sun-sweetened yellow,

Her eyes a stormy blue.

Her smile, windy,

Her life, askew.

Alice, Alice,

Lost in dreamy lands.

A place of wonder,

Lacking the sands.

You're friends,

The queerest bunch to ever meet.

You're land,

The oddest place I've ever seen.

Alice

You're beauty still applauds me.

Alice

Your heart still young.

Alice

Your gaze still passes upon me.

Alice

Take me where you're from."

The Dormouse then fell back to the ground into his deep sleep. I thought about things that had just occurred. I blinked at the Dormouse for a moment and opened my mouth to speak, but decided not to upon seeing the Hatter perk up.

"Yes? What is it you wish to say lovely Alice," said the Hatter to me in a very peculiar tone.

"I," I began to say but paused, and then resumed after thought "I wish to know, that is how you know, my child-hood appearance."

The Hare and Hatter both flashed a cunning grin at me and the Hatter step-forward to me at the slightest bit. He placed his cold, rough hand, on my cheek and spoke to me in a soft tone of voice.

"Alice, Alice, I didn't expect you to remember back to the days of your youth. Back then, you were only a young child of seven years, and it has been twice as many years as that. All that matters now is that you're back in your true home, the home you must protect like a mother would do to her young child," said the Hatter. I blinked at the Hatter and pulled away from him. "What did he mean by 'protect'," I thought to myself quietly. The Hatter and Hare only continued to smile at me, and I, felt un-easy at the moment, but I finally decided to simply plop down on a near-by patch of grass, and watch them calmly.