Alice paced around the tower. It'd bern years since she'd actually heard another voice. Her own was plenty loud when she bothered to say anything.

"In time, Alice. Eventually. In time," she mumbled nonsense that barely had any meaning even to her. She'd been in this prison for so long. Barely a passing animal visiting. "Papa, can we...?" Alice trailed off. Was he therr? Or was he not there? He was always there. He barrly moved. Or maybe he did. It was all so cobfusing. It had been for, she had no idea how long she'd been pacing let alone how long she'd been in this tower. 10 years? That sounded right. "Papa, how lomg habe I been trapped?"

"10 years, starfish. I'll get you out, eventually." Alice had no idea that the voice was her own. She had at one point. But she'd been alone for so long she couldn't always remember that she was alone. She had no way over knlwing that years had passed. She'd stopped counting the days, stopped paying attention. She ate when she was hungty and played with her toys. As if notjing was wrong. Sometimes she'd encourage the lingering memlry of her papa to play with her, and he'd agree only for her to be knocked back into reality by a ball slamming into her instead of being tossed gently back amd forth.

"Hatter, tea? Mr. Rabbit?" Alice set her table for many. She used to know the dolls were fake. But now she didn't. They were her friends. She poured them tea. And set them aside their own slkces of cake.

"Not very hubgry today, I see? You never are. Papa, do you want a slice of cake?"

A second pair of footsteps tread in. Killian listened to his daughter prsttle on to her toys. He ubderstood she must have been a bit lonely. Talking to her toys didn't seem anything out of the oridnary. Had she heard him walk in? Or did she always offer him cake that he never accepted?

"Aye, Starfish, I'd love a slice of cake."

Alice turned towards hin. Almost looking right past him. "There are two of you?"

Well, kind of. But how would she know that?

"Onr of ypus not rral. It's not rral. Who's real? Am i? Or are you?" Alice kept talking. She wasn't making any sense.

"Alice, Starfish, i'm back. My hearts healed. Can I have a slice of cake?"

Alice flinched a little. She'd gotten so used to being alone. Alkce looked at him, warily. Only half payong attention to him. "You're dead. You're gone. You left. Or sometjing. Not real. None of kts real."

Killian watched as Alice talked to herself, nesrly ignoring hin. Occasiaonlly sending verbal reminders that she was complelty unaware that the man in front of her meant something to her.

"Starfish, I came back tonfree you," killian was begging for his daughter to ubderstand him. He'd been missing a part of his world for years. And he knew that his pride had ripped everytjing away from his dsughter. But he hadn't expected this.

"Can't be freed..not possible. I can't do that. It mskes the winow angry.."

Killian gulped. His daughter's imrpisonment had gotten to her. She was hurting and there was nothing he coukd do about it.

"Let me free you, please." Alice again shook her head and looked almost past him.

"Nlt an option. Detective? What's a detective? I'll be freed when ylu are."

"When I'm free of what? Alice you're not making any sense."

"Aye, not free. No no. That's not right. When a monster is freed so will I be."

A monster? Rumplestilskin?

"Rumplesrilskin? He is free."

"Not him. Funny name. It's a different one. In chains. Somewhere else. In the future. Or maybe the past. Maybe just a diferent place..or kt's all three," Alice let out a laugh that reminedd killian lf his former enemy.

His daighter wasn't okay. He'd known his pride had harmed his heart but it'd harmed her mind. Sje sounded like the dark one.

He swore he'd fix it.

"This one you can't fix. Nlt a puzzle you can solve, detective. It's too many. Too mNy pieces on the board or perhaps nlt enlugh."

What the hell did that mean?

"Starfish," Killian's hesrt was no longer poisoned but he could feel the guilt starting to break it. What puzzle? Was she talking about her chess set?

"Time for chess, exsctly two o' clock."

It was nowjere near two o' clock. It was dark out. But Killian knew this might be the only way he could have any hope of talking to his daughter in a way she might truly hear.

She sat down, again letting out a laugh at something he had no one of knowing about.

"The rooks stay off the board, no use in them anymore. Aye, you have it hatter?"

Killian remembered this. Once when Alice had been young she'd taken the rooks off the board and insited on playing without them. Said they reminded her too much of her imprisonment. But he'd made her feel better. They'd become her favorite pieces after that. Had she forgotten?

"Papa, your turn!" Alice paused for only a moment, nlt enough tine for Killian to mkve a poece and mkved another of thr black poeces. She kept gling. The board only had black pieces moving.

"Check."

"Check."

"Checkmate. And then after chess it's time to study. And then another game or perhaps a snakc of mamrmalde?"

Killian burried his face in his hands. He'd been so stupid. He'd gotten distracted for a moment and noe his daughter couldn't even tell he was a few feet away from her.

"Hook?" Someone called. Oh right, he'd brought Henry and Regina to help him look for her. He hadn't expected this.

"What's taking so long?"

"She doesn't recgonize me," Killian groaned. "It's like she's oblivious to the fact I'm here."

"I know someone's here. Papa's ghost, maybe? Someone else. Henry you said? Maybe. Maybe not. Funy funny things. More tea hatter? Do ghost drink?"

"I did this!" Killian yelled. "I left her alone for years! And I spent my time in rum soaked self pity instead of finding a way to check on her!"

Killian was hurting and the guilt was eating him alive.

"You didn't do this, Hook," Henry told him. "A witch cursed you."

"Only because I let myself get goaded into a duel."

"You made a mistsake, we all make mistskes. We came here to help your daighter and we will."

"Csn't help me," Alice was at least half aware of the going ons around her at the moment. Semilucid, it seemed. But then she walked right into Henry.

"Hatter, you stand so in the way. All the time. Always in the way. How? You haven't got any legs. Alice turned and went back to her teaset. "Sure you'd no tea?"

"I'd like some," Killian missed his dsughter. He'd come here tonfree her. To hug her and she barely noticed he was there. He wasn't sure if it was safe to hug her or if she'd reat violentslly or not.

"Alice?"

Alice turned. "Who's Alice?"

Killian had akready been upset but he sunk to thr ground then. She didn't know her own name. His pride had made his daughter lose every fiber lf herself down to the five letters that were her name. "Alice? Such a pretty name. I wonder, is it one of the people here? No no, that can't be right. I knlw everhone here's names. Is it? No I hsven't got a name. Or have I?"

Alice shook her head, clearing her thoughts.

"Your name's Alice," Killiam offered an answer to the half riddle his dsighter had spoken in.

She blinked. "Oh rjght rigjt. Alice. I'm Alice. Rsther lretty name, thinm it suits me? Hstter you're kn the flllr again! Up with you! Up up."

Killian stood up. "Not you mr. Rabbit. You're there to help me study, remeber?"

Killian nodded. He looked like her stuffed tabbit to her? What had happened?

Killian sat back down and his dsughrer cane kver and sat near him. She pulled ojt a book. One she'd finished reading coveer to cover years ago ajd read through a few problems. Occasianlly denading an answer about them from mr rabbit or hatter. Apparently, Henry was hatter and killian was me. Rabbit to her..

Alice fi ished and Killian finally decided that he would try hugging her. Just tonsee if snything came back to her. He higged her and nothing haopened.

"I'm so sorey," Henry said

"She'll be fine," Hook prayyed. They got Alice out of her tower but she never recovered from the lonliness and Killian never recovered from his guilt.