Disclaimer: Alice and Tin Man don't belong to me, they belong to SyFy. The craziness, however, is all me.
The Duchess stood back and regarded her work with a satisfied air before she picked her way back inside the hideaway. A few days absence coupled with a brief squall off Lake Mirana had left some debris on her odd crystalline skylights as well as the cistern. She was hardly a fan of manual labor, but she found immense satisfaction in taking care of every single need for the cave dwelling. Thirty minutes of hot, sweaty work were well worth the end result.
She examined the palms of her hands as she put away the broom. It would not do to develop calluses, though. Everyone expected her to have the soft, delicate hands of a lady and rough patches would only raise unwanted questions. She took considerations like this seriously. There was more than one way to hone one's body into a weapon.
And it was time to take care of hers. The only downside to the cave was its lack of suovna. Still, she loved the giant stone tub. In Wonderland City, she'd opted for an efficient Other Side-style shower and made use of the suovna facilities in her building. Baths were a luxury she could only afford when she escaped the city.
The hot water and steam reminded her of the last time she'd been in a suovna – and what an experience that had been. Her lips curved slightly at the memory. She hadn't meant to report to Jack and Giacomo whilst they were in the middle of a steam bath, but the opportunity had been too good to let pass, in more ways than one. She hadn't been joking about the security of the room itself. The chances of anyone overhearing were slim to none. No one would ever question seeing her slip into her fiancé's quarters.
She honestly hadn't meant to goad Jack as much as she had, but his presence had been as distracting to her as hers had been to him. Her teasing was borne out of frustration as much as irritation at his inability to trust her.
The Queen of Hearts had taught her how to recognize the signs of attraction and arousal, as well as how to turn them to her advantage. She was as adept at hiding those reactions as she was at all others, but that did not mean that she was never affected.
Jack would always have an effect on her. Like it or not, they were bound together in a way that few people were or ever would be.
Duchess bit her lip as she stepped into the hot water, allowing herself to remember the warmth and solidity of him as he pinned her to the wooden wall of the suovna. As a teenager, Jack Heart had been endearingly tall and skinny, all elbows and knees. It was only as he began training under Caterpillar that he began to fill out, growing into his limbs and developing the sleek, agile grace of a skilled fighter. The signs were clear, even if she hadn't been spying for his mother. She'd feigned ignorance of course, gently teasing until he blushed and stammered as he only did in her presence.
She missed that boy, the one with the bright blue eyes and the ears as big as kites. The one who looked at her as if she hung the stars and the moon.
That boy was gone now. She had carried on the work of the Queen of Hearts and made sure of that.
Duchess slammed her eyes shut at the first hint of tears. She would not cry, not even here. True tears were a luxury and a weakness she could not afford.
She had learned from a very young age that true tears never worked. False tears, on the other hand, could be used to manipulate at will. At the right time and with the right people, they evoked sympathy and compassion from their intended targets. At others, they inspired superiority over the one who wept. It all depended on how they were used. She made use of false tears quite often and to her best advantage.
The last time she'd cried true tears was the night that Jack escaped to the Other Side with the Stone of Wonderland, spurred on by a storm of hurled accusations and hurtful words that rang horridly hollow and true. He'd caught her by surprise, a rare feat indeed, and cut the ground from beneath her feet.
I never knew you. The woman I grew up with, the woman I loved, doesn't exist. You are a stranger to me.
How horrible it had been to find herself face-to-face with Alice Hamilton weeks later, knowing that Jack had fallen for her. Alice was her exact opposite, small and dark-haired and brash, the fire to her ice.
Her frustration flared at the thought of the Oyster. Alice Hamilton had been given an opportunity that Duchess would have given anything to have. She'd been offered some semblance of Jack's love and a proper place at his side and she'd rejected it – for what? Life on the Other Side and the companionship of the Mad Hatter. Foolish girl.
And yet she was grateful. If Alice had accepted his proposal, Duchess would have had to watch as the two of them ruled Wonderland hand-in-hand. She would not have been able to bear it. She would rather have left Wonderland forever than watch someone else take the place that was rightfully hers.
The stabbing pain in her chest was nothing new and Duchess wished, not for the first time, that she did not have the ability to recall and dissect events so cleanly. Yet it was one of her greatest skills, well suited for espionage. That ability meant that she could see the events around her as they truly were and act accordingly. It had saved her life over and over again, but it was a curse as much as it was a blessing.
The Duchess inhaled deeply and allowed herself to sink into the fragrant water until it covered her head. She needed to think clearly now and focus on other things. Lucan Spade and Lord Grandin were returning to Wonderland City and it was vital that she formulate a plan of attack.
There was time enough for self-pity and regret. She had a job to do.
Jeb allowed himself one last wave in Charlie's direction before he turned back to Az. "Are you sure you want to do it this way?" he inquired in an undertone.
Her nod was quick and decisive. "He cannot be seen with us, not now. He's the White Knight and Jack Heart needs to be certain that his loyalty remains with him." She was royal; she understood the need to be assured of a vassal's fidelity.
"And you're sure he won't say anything beforehand?"
"You don't trust him?"
He grinned ruefully. "I don't think I've ever met anyone more honorable. He is, however, quite mad. But that's Wonderland, I suppose." No, he was certain that Sir Charles of the far too many names would never willingly give them away. But after spending several days with the White Knight and hearing the things that came out of his mouth…well, he wasn't going to hold his breath.
"Wonderland before, not now," she corrected, her amethyst eyes sweeping the dirty streets of Wonderland City. Charlie had an altogether different sort of madness, one that was borne from years of living alone – no, not alone, but with the ghosts of his past – and tempered by the natural height of emotion exemplified by all the citizens of Wonderland. He was delightful and amusing.
There was nothing delightful or amusing about the recovering tea addicts that even now milled around her. The witch's Vapors had left the citizens of the O.Z. docile, hazy, and lost in dreams. This was altogether different and much more horrifying.
Raw had been correct in his reports. These people were horrifying wraiths, buoyed by false emotions and left achingly bereft once they crashed to the ground. They were hollow-eyed and thin, their eyes burning with a hunger that had nothing to do with the stomach and everything to do with the soul. They were shadows of their former selves, a once-proud and vivacious people reduced to nothing but empty shells.
Az shuddered to think of how they must have felt to Raw.
There was something akin to pity in Jeb's gaze as he took in the same scene. "Let's hope that cure for the Vapors has had some effect."
"I'll tell Mother to send more the next time we speak." But perhaps she would have to speak with Jack Heart to find out if any adjustments needed to be made. If Glitch could not find a solution, no one would.
"They need something to live for."
She turned back to him. "What?"
He shrugged. "Look at them. They have no purpose. Nothing to look forward to but the next dosage of tea. They've been riding artificial highs for so long that they've forgotten what it is to truly live. To truly enjoy. To love, and hate, and cry." He shook his head. "What kind of existence is that?"
"Not much of one," she agreed. She wanted to help so badly that it hurt, but surely that was not her job. These were not her people. If there was anyone who needed to inspire the people of Wonderland to live once more, it was Jack Heart.
She could not forget why she was here. Raw was still out there, somewhere. The people who had tried to bring the Outer Zone down around her ears and murder her family were out there as well.
And her power pulsed inside of her, as wild and frantic as ever. It was at full strength and she was already weary from battling with it. "Come. We must make our way to the palace."
"I wish you'd let me bring more than just Captain Wheeler." The head of her personal guard walked a good three paces behind them, her keen eyes missing absolutely nothing as they worked their way to the topmost levels of the capital city.
"We only need a standard-bearer now. Any bigger and our party would be much more noticeable. Besides, they had to stay with the horses." Large animals were not allowed past the lowest levels of the city. Both Freeheart and Moonshadow had objected rather violently to the smell and aura that blanketed the city anyway.
"In any case, do you not trust me?" she murmured. Her senses were just as alert, just as keen. She had taken the liberty of activating several alarm spells: they would silently alert her if anyone slipped within a certain radius of her person, intent on causing mischief. She'd already dodged several would-be purse thieves. No one needed to see just what was hidden beneath the voluminous folds and deeply cowled hood of her full-length cloak. No, that was one surprise that had to be sprung at the palace. "Or yourself, for that matter?"
"Safety in numbers," he reminded her. He did admit that if they were set upon now, there was little that they would not be able to fight off.
"Three is a good number."
Jeb rolled his eyes, though the gesture was hidden beneath his own cloak. "All right, I'll stop arguing with you."
"You should," was the sweet reply. "You lose every time."
He laughed outright at that and wished they were not in a crowded street so that he could kiss her for being so infuriating and perfect. He instead settled for squeezing her hand. "Like how I lost about wearing this damnable uniform? No wonder Father hates them so much."
"First impressions are everything, Jeb. Especially here. We must show Jack Heart and everyone else who is watching that the Outer Zone and the House of Gale are not to be underestimated." There was steel in her voice.
"And we will," he assured her. "Although…this is going to be a surprise."
"As it should be. We must have the upper hand, Jeb, and we will only get it now because he does not know that we are coming. No one does." Az turned to look at him, solemn now that they were almost in place. "Shadow Man logic, Jeb."
"I'm not the Shadow Man yet."
"No. But you will be. And you must learn to play his game. Well, it's everyone's game, really."
"And what game would that be?"
Her lips curved, but her amusement did not ring true. "The Game of Suits, of course."
"Are you bored, Your Grace?"
The Duchess spun around, fluttering her eyelashes briefly. "My lord Spade! You startled me," she lied. She'd anticipated his approach from the moment she stepped into the audience chamber. "Really, how can I be bored when there is so much to see?"
That, at least, was the truth. Wonderland followed Nonestican royal tradition by running weekly public audiences so that everyday citizens could not only petition their ruler, but observe a small facet of how he or she ruled. This was the true test of a monarch's mettle. Kings and Queens had to think on their feet, judging the moods of the supplicants and the observers, and arrive at a ruling that was fair for all. It was no small wonder that the previous Queen of Hearts had not participated. Her petitioners would have eaten her alive and she would have beheaded them all.
When Jack announced the reinstatement of the ancient practice, the citizens of Wonderland had responded enthusiastically. The palace had been flooded with people during the first few sessions, and even now they were still remarkably well attended.
The Throne Room during a public audience was the place to see and be seen. Most of the significant players of Wonderland's power circles could be found there, trading secrets and observations and trying to catch others doing the same. If one wanted to know something, find something, or be a part of something, or simply catch a glimpse of the king and the palace, one came to a public audience. There was also no better place to find one's allies and keep tabs on one's rivals.
The Throne Room was a treat for the ordinary citizen. It was one of a handful of rooms that Jack had fully refurbished once he'd moved the court back to Wonderland City. Like the palace itself, the Throne Room was round, ringed by two circles of massive columns in pale, rose-gold marble accented with curls of black iron. Symbols of each of the four major clans – Diamonds, Hearts, Spades, and Clubs – were tiled into the floor with black marble. Even the throne, which Jack had specially commissioned from a talented blacksmith, was constructed from elaborate wrought iron in the shapes of all four clan symbols. His feeling was that no matter who sat upon the throne, all four clans were equal. The citizens of Wonderland appeared to appreciate the sentiment.
The current White Knight was one of those people. The man, who insisted upon being called Charlie, had nearly cried when he spied the diamond patterns on the throne chair. There was no doubt that he was strange, but he had certainly proved himself during the coup. He had returned to the ruins of the Diamond City after the Mad Hatter followed Alice Hamilton through the Looking Glass and showed no inclination of returning.
And yet here he was, standing tall and proud at Jack's left side, turning suspicious glares on all those that approached the king.
Duchess had no time to ponder the White Knight's abrupt return to Wonderland City. There was time enough to think on that, though his reasons were likely to be nothing more than the whims of a madman. She wanted more information on those envoys. Had Lord Spade been bold enough to smuggle them into the city, or were they still being entertained on Lord Grandin's estates?
"So much to see?" he echoed. His pale eyes glittered with something that looked like amusement but was more likely to be derision. Duchess knew exactly what he thought of her. She was a pawn and a woman – nothing more than a means to an end when it concerned undermining Jack Heart. "My dear, surely you must be joking. What is there to see?"
She smiled. "My fiancé, of course. I do enjoy watching him work." She allowed her gaze to fall on Jack deliberately, but kept her target in her peripheral view.
Surely enough, his expression contorted briefly before he shook his head, chuckling good-naturedly. Lucan Spade was a superb actor, but she was better. "Young love," he commented.
"Surely he must have missed you while you were visiting Port Morraine."
"He always misses me, and I him," she demurred, and selected her next words carefully. "We do share everything, after all."
Lucan Spade certainly wasn't one to waste an opportunity. "Everything? I hope you did not tell him of our…foreign friends."
"Why ever not? We keep no secrets between the two of us."
"Our king has been wary of foreign overtures. I do not blame him. But ever since he dismissed the envoys from out closest neighbors, I feared that he would develop a prejudice."
"Prejudice? From our king?" She shook her head in wry amusement. "Surely not. I can assure you, Lord Spade, that he was quite intrigued by the account of my stay with Lord Grandin. He is simply cautious, my lord. You know our fair country's situation as well as I and he worries so about being in someone else's debt."
"I see." His tone of voice was indulgent. "Does this mean that he can be swayed towards inviting them back?"
Duchess glanced at him and wondered at the monster that lurked beneath that urbane veneer. Spades were supposed to be loyal. She lifted one shoulder in an elegant shrug. "Perhaps."
She was saved from further questions by a sudden clamor near the entrance of the Throne Room. From her position in the inner ring of columns near Jack, there was no clear line of sight, but she heard the herald's words clearly enough.
"Princess-" How odd. The Three of Clubs was always composed. Now, his distinctively sonorous voice positively squeaked and trembled. "Her Royal Highness, Princess Azkadellia Gale of the Outer Zone and Commander Jebediah Cain of the Queen's Riders."
The Throne Room went deathly silent. Then, it positively erupted with hushed exclamations and excited whispers.
She turned to Jack first, noting how he'd half-risen from the throne chair in utter shock before he remembered himself and sat down. Disbelief warred with anger as he looked off to the side towards…Elisa Club? The Head Librarian and Chief Chronicler stood across from Duchess, her countenance pale and confused. Her mere presence was a mystery, for she rarely ventured outside the confines of the still-secret location of the Great Library.
Duchess looked back at the king, who was facing forwards once more. His expression had shut down and become utterly neutral. His earlier, uncharacteristic lack of composure was startling. Jack was well versed in hiding his emotions. Any advantage she had was because she knew people, and the person she knew best was Jack. The fact that he'd been so briefly readable spoke for a complete loss of control.
Duchess turned her attention back towards the entrance to the Throne Room and in doing so, caught the briefest flash of absolute fury on her companion's face. How strange, that the Outer Zone's heir could inspire such strong reactions from the people of Wonderland. "Lord Spade?" she inquired, intrigued. "You do not seem happy about this strange turn of events."
The head of the Spade clan needed but a moment to school his expression into one of mild disappointment. "Your Grace, surely you are aware that our unexpected guest has a reputation that precedes her. She is a fearsome sorceress who deposed her mother at a tender age and proceeded to rule with an iron fist for fifteen years. You'll forgive me for wishing that she remained far from us."
"I have also heard that she was possessed by an ancient witch and rescued by her younger sister, the Princess DG," she countered.
"Fifteen years of tyranny speak for themselves, Your Grace. She nearly plunged the entire world into darkness. I choose to believe these events over rumors."
That was a fair point. Everyone remembered the Double Eclipse. And after all, no one in Wonderland had truly met the princess beyond the Nine of Clubs. Stories of the heir to the Emerald Throne spread far and wide all over Nonestica, but there was little that could truly be said about her.
The one thing everyone did know about Azkadellia Gale was that she was one of the most powerful women in Nonestica. She would soon be the queen of one of the mightiest countries on the continent, years of internal strife and tyranny notwithstanding. The Outer Zone possessed a strong economy thanks to the fertility of the lands controlled by the Eastern Guild, the emeralds that were mined in the north, and the livestock that was bred and raised to the west and south. It had also begun to step into the hole left in the technological sector when Wonderland had fallen under the control of the Hearts.
But Azkadellia Gale was truly formidable because of the magic she wielded. Word had reached Wonderland of the recent attempted coup, where she nearly brought down a thousand rebel soldiers single-handedly. They said that she'd turned the ground to mud and called the winds into a storm unlike any other. She had brought down the magical barrier around Central Palace to allow soldiers to rescue her family.
There were also whispers that she had brought someone back from the dead. That thought was too ridiculous to contemplate. Duchess could almost believe in power, but not resurrection. It seemed that the princess inspired much awe and terror and even more gossip.
But then Duchess caught her first glimpse of her and thought perhaps all of the fuss was warranted.
Azkadellia Gale was beautiful. Her skin was ivory pale and the line of her jaw was strong and striking. Most startling of all were her bright violet eyes, set beneath dark, arched brows. The expression in them was fairly smooth and expressionless, tinged with perhaps the slightest hint of amusement. She caught and held every eye in the room effortlessly, serene and commanding at the same time. Duchess immediately recognized her for what she was: another experienced player of the political game. Here was a woman who knew exactly what she was doing, why she was doing it, and how she was going to play it.
Everything, from the unannounced entrance to her clothing, had been selected with absolute deliberation. The dress was strange for Wonderland sensibilities, which leaned more towards clean lines, structure, and neutral, more basic colors. Azkadellia's dress was decidedly fanciful, somewhat old-fashioned, and foreign. That did not take away from the fact that the dress was absolutely exquisite. A white silk under-gown was overlaid with an over-gown of delicate chiffon in a spectrum fade pattern that shifted from white to vibrant gold. Gold filigree caps anchored the split, flowing sleeves whilst a matching bodice belt enhanced an enviable figure. Masses of rich brown hair were elaborately styled and anchored by a twisted gold circlet studded with emeralds.
Azkadellia arrived with two companions – two, to show that she was important enough to warrant attendants, but it was a number small enough to seem non-threatening. Duchess thought seemed because the princess was sure to have brought more guards.
One of her companions obviously was one of her guards, a female garbed in the formal green and gold uniform of the Gale Force, the elite guards of the Outer Zone. She carried the banner of the House of Gale, one gold circle within another connected by swirling lines on a white background. The Nine of Clubs had informed her before he left for the Outer Zone that the two circles were symbolic of Nonestica's twin suns.
The second companion was no less than the commander of the Queen's Riders, son of the hero Wyatt Cain and a Resistance hero in his own right. It was said that Jebediah Cain and Azkadellia had trained the Outer Zone's new and innovative police force themselves. Juicer gossip said that their relationship was not only professional, but personal.
Well, if that was true, the Duchess could not fault her taste. Commander Cain young, handsome, and full of life. His blonde curls and bright blue eyes certainly drew many admiring stares and he cut a fine figure in his white silk doublet, green leather jerkin, brown breeches, and short cloth-of-gold cape. The device on his right breast was obviously the symbol of the Queen's Riders: a green horse rampant on a white field edged in gold. He walked just behind his princess' right shoulder and stared straight ahead, though the set of his shoulders spoke of heightened awareness. He was wary and certainly had a right to be so.
Even if he wasn't the princess' lover, it was clear that he would obviously fight to the death in her defense.
As the party from the Outer Zone drew to a stop a respectful distance from the dais, Duchess pondered the success of the surprise entrance. She would have done things differently, of course, but even without knowing her exact motives, Duchess could safely say that it was effective. It was easy enough to cross Wonderland's borders without suspicion, but Wonderland City? Magic might have played a large part in that. But by engineering her own entrance, Azkadellia Gale had made certain that she couldn't be introduced to the people of Wonderland through some farcical show of solidarity or friendship. The Outer Zone and Wonderland were nowhere near that stage, but that was how Jack wanted it to seem so that Merry Land and Quox would take notice.
Well, they certainly would notice now, she thought, looking back at Lucan Spade. The older man's expression was nigh unto inscrutable now, but his eyes resembled chips of glass as he regarded the Outer Zone's future queen. What spanner would that throw in the works now, she wondered?
Azkadellia dipped into a curtsy befitting a princess greeting a king. Commander Cain and the standard-bearer bowed deeply. "Your Majesty. I bring peace and well-wishes from my mother, Queen Lavender Gale and my father, the Prince Consort Ahamo." Her voice was pleasantly low and rich and echoed around the Throne Room with little effort.
Jack stood up and stepped off the dais, all smooth, liquid grace and restrained power. His black suit was impeccably tailored, his tie the red and gold of Clan Heart. He took the princess' hand and raised it to his lips. "I am pleased to receive the well-wishes of the House of Gale, Your Highness. Welcome to Wonderland. I trust you had a pleasant journey?"
"Indeed. You have a beautiful country."
The pleasantries would have continued in this vein had it not been for Charlie. Ever since the princess' entrance, the White Knight had gone ghastly pale and slack-jawed. He recovered his wits (or what little of them he had remaining), and cried. "My lady! Your Highness! Why did you not bestow upon me the honor of knowing your true identity?"
From her vantage point, Duchess saw the princess' eyebrow inch slightly upward. Commander Cain was less subtle and clenched his jaw.
Jack glanced between Charlie and the princess and slowly relinquished her hand. "Your Highness, are you previously acquainted with my champion?" The question was mild enough, but there was an underlying bite that Duchess knew all too well.
Before Princess Azkadellia could respond, Charlie spoke up once more. "Your Majesty, the Princess Azkadellia was the one I spoke of! The one who raised the Diamond City from the mists of the past!"
Once more was the Throne Room deathly silent. Even Duchess found that she did not know what to think. The Diamond City, that beautiful, ancient, ruined city, had returned? How was that possible?
Jack had gone ghostly pale, staring at Princess Azkadellia with something akin to horror – and hope?
It was the princess herself who diffused the situation. She laughed quietly. "Sir Charles gives me too much credit, Your Majesty." Her tone was equal parts innocent and wry. "I was simply curious and wished to see the city as it once was. It was an illusion, nothing more."
Smooth. Easy. It was as though she had handled countless situations like this before, and perhaps she had.
"I see." Jack beckoned to Giacomo. "Please, you must be tired. Allow us to get you and your party settled." He raised his voice to address the occupants of the room. "My apologies, but we must end today's audience session. They will resume as scheduled next week."
With that, he offered Princess Azkadellia his arm and whisked her away through the side entrance, with her party close behind. Giacomo followed with his cousin on his arm, but not before catching Duchess' eye and tilting his head significantly.
Lucan Spade caught her wrist lightly as she moved forward. His fingers were cold and her skin crawled unpleasantly from his touch. "Do keep me informed of these delightful new developments, Your Grace," he murmured, all good-natured interest.
Duchess favored him with an obliging smile. "I will do what I can, Lord Spade."
She forgot him not two steps later. Princess Azkadellia had effectively shifted the balance of power in her favor by stunning everyone. Duchess was impressed. But admiration was not trust and she knew that it would pay to be wary around this woman. Still, the thought of the ensuing intrigue thrilled her.
Princess Azkadellia was obviously a skilled player, but she was in Wonderland now. And in Wonderland, there were no hard and fast rules, just the game.
Please review!
I'm so sorry for the long wait - I was away for a conference for a week in Finland and then I went straight into a few weeks of fieldwork. Hopefully this chapter makes up for it. Everyone's (mostly) collided, so let the games begin!