Walking into the castle of Deces, the palace looked lived in but unkept. This wasn't good. This wasn't good at all.

"We should leave," Alice whispered but Ilosovic shook his head.

"And go where? If we don't have my home then we have nothing," he muttered, Alice still supporting him as they walked.

"And if we are dealing with bandits we may have less than nothing, like losing our lives for nothing," Alice warned to which the man shrugged and nodded to a portrait that still hung of a distant relative.

"They will know their place once they see me," the Black King said with an old but welcomed confident smile before a series of giggles erupted behind him.

"Dressed like that they won't," Mally shouted and the mad tea party's laughs grew louder until Alice shot back a look of warning and the cheerfulness of the crew was silenced. That stillness hung until they came upon the closed doors of the throne room. There were people inside, and by the sounds of it, a rambunctious bunch laid behind the doors.

"Are you sure about this?" Alice asked looking up as they both gripped a handle. Ilosovic shook his head.

"I'm still trying to make sure this isn't just a dream," he replied as he stared back at her. The pair gave a nod before pulling the doors open, creaking as they moved, eliminating the element of surprise for the misfit bunch though Alice could not say who was more surprised.

Herself, Ilosovic, or the tailless gray wolf that sat on the throne on the other side of the room.

"I'm sorry, M'lady, but this is where the trail ends. The scent of Alice and the traitors are lost," Bayard stated as he sat in the shadow of Mirana's white horse.

The White Queen kept her composure as she gave a single nod to the hound and Bayard bowed his head in return before seeking the company of his family. Her dark eyes moved to the forest to seek out a sign. She saw nothing, but she could hear a faint ticking in her mind. Stepping down from her horse, a pair of knights came to assist her but the woman raised her hand to halt them.

"I'll only be but a moment's notice," the queen assured before she made her way into the forest. Lifting her skirt up, Mirana stepped over broken branches as she stepped deeper into the wood. She was about eight trees deep when she nearly gave up her search.

Turning to go back to the Hatter's cottage, Mirana held her breath as she found Time leaning against a tree. He was staring the woman down with eyes that would surely burn her. Before she could say a word Time was upon her, a hand wrapped around her throat, pinning her to a sturdy elm. They were out of sight of her troops, but even if they were in broad daylight in the middle of her kingdom courtyard she doubted that any of her men would come to her aid. Time had a way of ending things abruptly.

"I was wondering when you would show," Mirana gasped as her hands went to the man's forceful hand. Time offered her a sharp smile as he leaned in closer to her face.

"You never wrote, never called… And now I know why," Time said as he slowly squeezed harder. "Tell me, which did you enjoy most? Fucking your stable boy or making a fool out of me?"

Mirana closed her eyes as she waited for Death to take her away, but Time released her and turned his back to her as Mirana gasped for air, leaning back against the tree to keep herself on her feet. "I, I didn't do it to spite you-" Mirana breathed as Time cast a wrathful gaze upon her once more. The pale woman hesitated to speak again, but she had to face the gravity of her situation. "Why are you helping her? And why are you here if not to kill me?"

Time smirked at the second question.

"Nothing would please me more than to snap your neck. I still might. However, this play has been torn from my guidance and it must see its ends. I am here to tell you that I've decided that from this point on, I shall be a neutral party in this war." The words both relieved Mirana and terrified her. Alice would not receive any more help from the deity, but Mirana could only expect his anger if anything at all. "I'm also here to tell, Mirana darling, that you don't have to worry about our daughter for whatever fate you meet."

Mirana's eyes, once fearful, were now filled with rage.

"How dare you threaten her life!" Mirana hissed stepping forward. "That angel is the only good thing you have ever brought to this world!"

"And I could say the same to you, but fret not love. I have no desire to harm her. Quite the opposite in fact," Time said as surveyed the woman he could have once given the world to, had she only asked him of it. Had she only given all of herself to him, but the woman only wanted what she could not have. Turning his head away, Time raised his chin and kept a watchful eye on the queen. "I think it's important for a father to be involved in his child's life, more so when the mother meets an unexpected end," Time taunted and Mirana threw herself at him in desperation.

"What can I do to make amends? I beg of you, Time, King of my world, Love of my life, Ruler of Under and beyond," Mirara groveled as she gripped his vest. "What can I do to convince you that I'm worthy again?" Mirana whispered as a hand reached up to touch his face but one of his hands caught it and he brought the woman's knuckles to his lips, placing a gentle kiss on them.

"Oh Mirana, it is too late for that," he cooed back and released her hand as he took a step back. The White Queen dropped to the forest floor and sought to grab hold of the man once more, but she only caught air. Her eyes searched for Time but found only the empty forest before her.

Time was no longer on her side.

...

The occupants of the Deces throne room all turned to see who was entering the hall and the once merry group of miscreants all hushed to a dead silence seeing the believed dead King and Queen of Black standing in the doorway.

Grail himself thought for a moment that they were being greeted by the ghosts of his past, but seeing the rather atrocious pants that King Stayne wore, Grail knew that he was not a specter. The man he knew would not be caught dead in a shade lighter than gray.

"Oi! Yer former majesties!" Grail shouted as he stood on the seat of the throne and opened his arms wide. "Welcome home!"

Alice and Stayne remained still, trying to process what exactly they had stumbled upon. The once regal room meant for lordship duties and formal ceremonial events was a mess. People, animals and furniture littered the room, wine bottles were found in about every paw, wing, fin and hand in the room, trays of spiced bread, roasted meats and cheeses upon every open surface, but even with this mess Ilosovic only had his attention on the wolf and the words that he had greeted them with.

'Former majesties'

The first to enter the room was neither Alice nor Stayne, but Nivens who had surprised the couple as he pushed past their legs to find the source of the gruff voice.

"Grail?! Is that you up there?" Nivens shouted and the wolf howled with joy as he jumped from the seat and ran to greet the rabbit, who moved to meet him in the center. "Oh! I thought you were dead for sure! I tried looking for you but Chess assumed it was a lost cause!" Nivens said quickly as he inspected the mangy mutt, gasping as he saw the stump on his hind end. "What in Time's name happened to your tail?!"

"Lost it when I was running from that band of white chess pieces," Grail laughed with a toothy grin. "I don't miss it much though, I'm much better at playing cards without it."

As the wolf and the rabbit engaged in conversation the rest of the group made their way into the room. Tarrant, Thackeray and Mally all looked to be quite at home in the chaotic party space and Chess was already fixing himself a plate. Alice was a little more open to the scenery but Ilosovic looked upon the room in horror.

"Well, this is clearly a nightmare now. This place has gone to hell," he muttered trying to find the face of a servant to clean up this mess but everyone was so unfamiliar to him save for Grail. Moving towards the wolf, Stayne folded his arms and waited for an explanation by the wolf only had eyes for the rabbit in the waistcoat. "Grail! What is the meaning of all this?!"

The wolf turned his attention to the giant that was barking at him and his ears flattened against his head.

"Oh, well, ya see, Stayne sir, after you were declared dead, us Outlander's thought we needed to break away from Kings and Queens on account of losing you and the missus. So as a collective we decided to do a new way of governing," Grail said happily as he tugged at the lapels of his jacket. "We are a proud republic!"

"I thought we were a democracy!" A voice shouted by a buffet table.

"No, that's not right, I didn't vote for that," a flamingo called from another corner of the room. "I explicitly remember we all agreed upon a parliament."

"Speak for yourself! I still say we should give no government a chance!" Came the voice of a woman who was laying behind the throne on a pile of pillows.

Grail shifted his eyes back up to Stayne, less confident than a few minutes prior and he offered a shrug. "We are still working on it."

"I suppose the rest of the Outland's is just as chaotic as this," Ilosovic groaned in annoyance as he covered his face. "What a fine mess this is. We might have been better off trying to face off Mirana with the hatter's tea set!"

Alice frowned as she placed a supportive hand alongside his arm and looked back to Grail.

"I know that this is all very sudden and I promise to explain all that I can later, but we need to know how well defended the land is from potential conflict? We need to be prepared for Mirana, whether that means running or fighting."

"Well I won't mince words with ya Miss Alice, the city was taken aback by the siege, but Mehkane has really bounced back and I'd argue that it would not have done so well without your guidance. The ironworkers finished building a wall around the boarders last year… A little surprised you didn't see them on your way in from… wherever it is you popped in from " Grail stated before looking back to Nivens who had yet to see the Outland's for himself. "Would you like a tour? As the elected Governor of the state, I would be more than pleased to take you all out."

Ilosovic opened his mouth to reject the offer as well as reclaim his title but Alice had already taken the head of the discussion.

"What we need right now more than anything is rest. Can you spare some beds? Maybe one of our old rooms here?" Alice asked and Grail nodded enthusiastically.

"The rooms within the old royal wing have been essentially untouched. Your rooms are still yours, but that's not outta respect mind you. Superstition provided that blessing," Grail said as Alice nodded and pulled Ilosovic towards the doors as Grail turned his attention back to Nivens, leading him towards the throne.

"Of all the places I believed I would find you. Not once did I consider to see you in a position of power," Alice could hear Nivens say in disbelief and Grail chuckled.

"Oh whitey, ye have little faith in me."

Alice and Ilosovic slowly made their way through the halls together. Silence filled the tense space between them as they stopped when they arrived in between the doors to their respective rooms. Alice looked to Ilosovic who's disposition had gone from furious to nervous. She frowned and took hold of his hand as she gave him a questioning look.

"Ilosovic, what's wrong?"

The man closed his eye and squeezed her hand gently. By the seasons did he hate this. This realization of how pathetic he truly was. Opening his eye again he looked down to Alice again, still waiting for her to vanish, to be swept away by a flood, or to tell him that she was leaving him for Tarrant.

"I'm waiting for the rude awakening that is coming to this maddening dream," he admitted. "I shouldn't have to ask you to prove that you are real, you've already done so much that you would never do in my dreams and yet," Ilosovic shook his head and Alice moved to place herself in front of him now, a hand moving along one of his sleeves before pinching his arm. The pain was unexpected. He gave her an inquisitive look, an expression that demanded an explanation.

"My father taught me that trick. If I'm ever in a dream that I want to wake up from all I need to do is pinch myself," Alice said as she offered a smile. "Try it."

Swallowing hard, Ilosovic did as she instructed, nipping his skin with his fingers and the pain did indeed come again. He repeated the process a few more times before he felt Alice's hands upon the irritated area, preventing further assault.

"I saw what she did to you," Alice whispered. "Time showed me." Ilosovic tensed at the confession.

"How much did you see?"

Alice was about to reply with the phrase 'enough', but caught herself. She saw all that she needed to see to know that he was hurt, but she only had minutes of being a specter of the horror show. He lived it. For six long years, he was drugged, tortured, assaulted and isolated from the rest of the world. She wanted to praise him for his fortitude, of keeping his sanity intact, but he had already reminded her a few times now that he was still waiting to wake up.

"I saw bits and pieces. The masked man pouring water over your face, the blue potions… Mirana and you," Alice said quietly and Ilosovic looked ill at the mentioning. Alice turned her head away unsure of how to continue the conversation. It would be daft to tell him that he was free and that things would get better- she didn't know if they would. She could comfort him and let him know it wasn't his fault, or some ridiculously optimistic string of words to try to smooth out the details.

"You never remarried," Ilosovic started breaking Alice away from her thoughts. Shaking her head she looked to the ring that was on her finger and smiled sadly shaking her head. He didn't look happy with the response to her surprise. He wasn't angry, he looked guilty almost. "I wouldn't have held it against you if you had. Or if you took to the arms of another. I didn't just want you to survive, I wanted you to live. Truly live."

Alice felt the anger swell in her again. Why did she resent the kindness he offered her? He had been living in the worst conditions one could experience and yet he was still able to be a gentleman to her. She didn't understand herself sometimes.

"I told you, the men where I come from are less than tolerable," Alice said gently as her fingers played with the wedding band that hung around her neck. "I had a few suitors, but I… I never really stopped looking for a way back to you. I didn't believe that you could truly be gone."

Alice watched as Ilosovic pinched himself again and she averted her eyes to the side. He needed more than a few days to know that he was no longer in Mirana's clutches, but a fear grew that maybe he would never truly believe that she was really present with him.

"Besides, most men did not look kindly upon Charles and I would not dream of subjecting him to that," Alice stated and caught confusion on her husband's face. She realized now that she had not officially informed him of their son's name. "Charles Ilosovic Kingsleigh," Alice continued and the features on Ilosovic's face brightened.

"I have a son?" His voice barely a whisper and Alice nodded with a smile.

"Yes, and he looks so much like you. Each day he grows a little taller," she said wiping at her eyes. "I call him my little weed."

Ilosovic smiled at the nickname. His wildflower had produced a weed. He had a family. He wanted to pinch himself again but if it was a dream he wanted to really savor it. Of all the things that the muiriled potions produced within his mind, none could compare to this feeling. Save for being able to meet his offspring or to have been able to be there for the birth of their son.

"I'm so sorry, Alice," he whispered. "I would have given anything to have been there for you both."

Alice shook her head quickly at the statement, grasping the hand that was a digit short. "You've given up more than I could have imagined." She wasn't happy about the circumstances, but his decision, as cruel as it was to send her away without consideration of her thoughts, may have been the thing that had provided this outcome. She stared at the empty space between his middle and pinky finger with a heavy heart knowing there was a time where she would not have pitied the man she now loved.

Thunder rolled outside, and Alice had to wonder if the storm had followed them here or if some other spirit of this world wanted to rain on their reunion. She raised his hand up to her lips and gently kissed the knuckle that was without a finger before turning her eyes up to him again surprised to find him on the verge of tears. He looked terrified. A storm usually brought about rainfall, and Alice didn't need long to recall that he suffered greatly in the presence of water.

"Ilosovic?"

"I don't want to wake up," he uttered causing Alice's heart to break. "I don't, I- I- I can't."

"Shhhhh," Alice cooed gently as she brought his hand to her cheek and held it to her face. "I'm here Ilosovic. You're here. We're together and you're awake."

He shook his head in disbelief and she released his hand and attempted to cup his face but she was too small for the task. Her brow furrowed and she looked to the door of his chambers. She took hold of his hand once more and pulled him into the room after her.

The room was exactly how she remembered it with the exception of the layers of dust that veiled the furniture. The bed that they had shared was untouched, still made from the day that they had set off to protect their kingdom. A kingdom that they evidently didn't have anymore.

But they did have each other, and she was going to prove that to him. Even if it took her every day to show him that he was safe, she would. Starting today.