Now rated M for violence (probably should have already had it that high) and other things..

The updates have been coming so quick because I've been trying to have at least one chapter in advance done before posting the current chapter. However, my spring break is now here and I have noticed myself slowing down a bit…but never fear, we're more than halfway thru now, I will get it done in a timely manner.

So, here's two chapters to hold you readers over in case the updates don't come so quick in the next week.


The thing that stood out most in her mind was that the castle was incredibly spacious, as if it had been built to house a giant. The walls and windows dwarfed poor Alice, but seemed to fit the Knave just fine.

This, and the place was oozing with fantastic red décor.

"You are much taller than I remember, Ilosovic," Alice commented. But then she could not recall where she remembered him from. Time was playing a cruel joke on her mind but she assumed that she would soon be better—the doctor had given her a pill and ordered bed rest, which she had no objections to. She was quite tired.

"Do you know why you're here, Alice?" the man muttered in response.

Truth be told, he could not figure out the memories lodged inside his mind either. He remembered a strange world in which he had indeed been shorter, or perhaps everyone else was just taller, where he had courted young Alice and scared away one of her suitors. Yet, when he woke one morning, he was lying in the Red Queen's castle. He had not figured out why he was there, or why he had such vivid visions of the other world. According to Alice's recollections, he must have just had a very real dream in which he was to marry Alice. In a way it made sense, but in many others it did not. He couldn't have possibly left Wonderland, he thought.

Or did he leave the place?

The Knave did not like the way his mind was bending so feverishly over what surely must have been a dream. Certainly must have been.

Right?

An 'other world,' how ridiculous.

His eye pointedly looked to Alice.

"It is a dream, I already told you," she replied.

"A dream?" he repeated, "What exactly is a dream?"

"This place," she insisted.

"Wonderland?" the Knave uttered.

"Is that what this place is called?" She nearly laughed. "Simply must be a dream, then."

Alice skipped down the hall, her head feeling rather light after visiting with the doctor. The Knave stared at her dumbfounded. He shut his eyes tightly and shook himself, trailing in her shadow as he led her to the Queen's room. How the girl could be so…lighthearted and so completely oblivious at a time like this, he would never know.

"Your quarters," he soon announced, pushing the heart shaped doors in and revealing a beautifully done up bedroom within. The girl's eyes lit at the dazzling interior, but the moment she approached the bed she felt faint. The Knave spared her no words as she collapsed there, cushioned by too many pillows and looking too small on such a spacious bed.

His jaw locked at the sight. Though it took him a moment, he did indeed leave her alone to get some rest, locking the doors from the outside as he left.

But somehow, a particular White Rabbit had wriggled his way in.

"Alice," he hissed. "Alice…wake up… Please wake up?"

Her eyes fluttered for a moment, and then her vision cleared. It was extremely early—the sun wasn't even up. The moment she caught sight of the rabbit, however, she sat straight up and chirped, "You're the Whtie Rabbit!"

The creature nodded slowly while giving her a rather curious look.

"How do you know my name?"

"How do I not know your name? You're the Alice. Wonderland's champion!"

It was her turn to ponder. "I'm afraid I don't know what you mean. I'm no 'champion,' I'm just Alice."

The rabbit twitched. His fur was a bit too long and his eyes were a little darker than they should have been. He looked worn, and if it were possible for a rabbit to appear aged, he certainly looked it. The White Rabbit groaned, "Oh, no…not you too!"

"'Not me too' what?" Alice pressed, "You and Ilosovic seem awfully concerned about my wellbeing in this strange place…Wonderland, was it? I'm afraid I don't understand."

"Wonderland, Alice," the Rabbit implored in hushed tones, "It loves and adores you. You are the champion of this world… Wonderland, it seems, is directly connected to you!"

Alice's face fell a little flat. "Now, Rabbit, that just seems a little silly. And not to mention dream-like."

"D-dream…?"

"It all must be a dream, is it not?" she continued, a tinge of irritation in her words. No one was listening to her.

The White Rabbit looked crestfallen. His face went a little longer and his eyes turned darker still. His little paws running over one and other, the Rabbit finally whispered, "How could this be a dream, Alice? I am as real as you…if you would cut me," he motioned to the bandage on her shoulder, "I would bleed too. Last I recall, dreams weren't there to hurt people."

"But you're a talking rabbit."

"And you slew the Jabberwocky! Doesn't that mean anything to you?" The Rabbit touched her knee.

He was solid, warm, and had the softest paws. This White Rabbit was as real as could be.

Then his ears prickled and stood straight up. In a single leap he bounded off the bed with wide eyes, warning, "Don't be fooled by pretty words, Alice! Keep your wits about you!"

Her head was reeling as the rabbit slipped out the window and into the courtyard and the garden beyond. She soon realized why the creature was in such a hurry, as the doors to the bedroom soon came sweeping open. Light poured in as if the action had made the sun rise, and in its wake stood the shadowy figure of Ilosovic.

He smiled smugly. "Morning," the Knave called, offering a short bow before taking a step forward. "Did you sleep well?"

"Indeed," she replied.

He drew closer still. She folded her hands across her lap and watched him expectantly, waiting for his next question about how she felt or inquiry about Wonerland. The Knave stopped inches short of her, glanced the girl over and then pressed his lips to hers. The kiss lasted only a second, in which Alice's eyelashes fluttered over his face and she found herself holding her breath.

"And the shoulder?" he murmured, stepping back and brushing the bandage.

The shudder ran to her spine.

"I'm not sure," she replied slowly, "I just woke up, haven't had the time to stretch it out."

"Hm?" the Knave murmured, "Well then let's see." Alice unfolded her fingers and offered him her hand, which he took as if he was accepting a delicate flower. The man helped her stretch the limb this way and that, rolling her wrist in his grip and running his fingers along the length of hers as he did. His eye carefully watched her face for any sign of resistance or pain, but he could find none. He drew a short breath and kissed her knuckles, muttering to the skin, "I think it's healing well."

He was not expecting her to draw up onto her knees and take his head in her hands and kiss him as she did, but Alice went ahead and did it nonetheless. The Knave put a hand on either side of her on the quilt and knelt closer still, drinking her deeply and wanting so much more. But it was like a dream, as if he had been there before and knew the outcome, though his thoughts were blurred and washed from a hungering want.

This was not the Alice they knew. This was not the girl who had destroyed the Red Queen. Alice drew a short breath and the Knave whispered, "Your highness," once again. She did not hear him as her lips pressed to his once more and worked feverishly against his mouth before the Knave flew backwards and growled, "No... This is not the hour for such behavior."

The girl looked as if she'd been reprimanded, struck on the wrist, and was all together confused as to why. Alice settled back into her spot on the bed and took a few breaths to steady herself.

"I'm sorry…I…"

She did not know what had come over her. Though the kick in her heart was a delight, it was not much like Alice would behave. Of course, the Knave didn't mind in the least.

"Don't be…"

She shook her head.

"Perhaps…" he hesitated, "a tour should be in order. Of your new home."

It sounded like a grand idea. And then it took nearly the entire day.

Here was the courtroom and the Red Queen's court themselves, all six of them, still decked from head to toe in red, white and black, but no longer sporting misshapen body parts to fit in with the Queen, seeing as she was dead. Then there were the toads, looking fanciful in their frock coats. Next came the introduction of the Red Queen's army—no longer composed of card guards, no, this army was made up of several dozen Chessmen, each with a white base and splashed with a bucket of red paint. Alice inquired about their appearance, but the Knave brushed her off.

He thought it best to not mention the White Queen at all. No need for her to know these Chessmen had either willingly converted, or had been captured and beaten into loyalty.

Then there was the kitchen, the massive dining hall, the ballroom in all its splendor, and then a trip through the beautiful green gardens.

But everywhere Alice looked, all she could see were horrid, rugged walls masked with beautiful cloths. Was the place not unlike a jail cell?

Yet she kept her mouth shut and played a game of croquet with the court, finding the flamingo bats rather curious, and out and out demanding a new ball—no creatures would be harmed under her watchful eye. The court let the little girl win, as she grew bitter as the day grew long. Alice was tired and her feet hurt her so, she complained, making the court chew their nails and glance this way and that, hoping the Knave would be able to soothe her growing temper.

And so he did.

Following another visit with the doctor the Knave escorted her to her room once again, but just before reaching the door she'd glanced sideways to him, finding that he was staring straight ahead, looking very focused and very far away. She began to giggle at his stark appearance when suddenly he turned to her and pressed her to the wall, his hands lifting her by the waist while his lips stole her breath away.

She was a bit too small, he realized.

But that didn't seem to bother Alice. Her shaking fingers clung to his neck. His lips found the hollow of her throat, and he smiled when she whispered his name.

It was clumsy and reckless, but she was caught up in the mystery of the unknown and he in the passion of the moment—they nearly trampled a little White Rabbit as they made for the Queen's room.

His ears flopped back flat against his head.

"Oh dear," the Rabbit trembled.

The night was spent with whispers twisting through the trees and the halls; the Queen's throne room was locked and lodged shut. A glimmering sword and belt hung on the hook just inside and discarded bits of armor made a trail towards the bed. Entirely absorbed with him, Alice's toes curled and her heart fluttered. One minute she whispered his name and the next it turned into a scream.

Suddenly the girl turned over, her stomach feeling upside down as a strange anxiety trickled down her spine. She toyed with her fingers nervously and then glanced to the man beside her, he lying on his back. The heart-shaped patch forever glued to his face had turned a bloody red.

"How did you get it?" Alice barely breathed.

His good eye followed her gaze.

She didn't realize she'd been rude. Alice gasped, "Oh, only if I may ask, of course…"

He turned slightly and took her hand, watching it rather than facing her prying eyes. "It was when I first came here," he murmured while his thumb brushed along the length of hers, "The Jubjub bird attacked me when I stepped into the Red kingdom." Alice put her other hand over his. She only felt it proper to such a dramatic answer.

He struggled to find his words. "I…The bird. The bird carried me about a dozen feet into the air before I could have a go at it. It dropped me…and then with it's other foot tried to reclaim its prey before it fell… The claws caught me along the face and took my eye with it."

"Damn bird!" the Knave roared. He had fallen no less than ten feet out of mid air, smashed his shoulder and his side all the while half his face was marred and bleeding. The four men whom he had brought with him from the Outlands stood paralyzed in fear.

"What are you waiting for you imbeciles?" But the Knave wasn't about to let anyone help him. He shuffled to his feet with some difficulty, groaning and hissing as he pressed a hand to his face. Blood ran swiftly between his gloved fingertips. Soon the Knave had pushed his way past a dozen card guards, even punching two to the ground before he shoved his way inside the castle's courtroom.

There was the Red Queen surrounded by her humorous, costumed court.

Without a word of warning, Ilosovic dropped to his knees before her highness. He had only uttered three words before the Queen turned and practically ran towards the bleeding man, she too bending to her knees and gasping in horror at what her Jubjub bird had done to such a handsome man.

"Have him bandaged! Now!" the Red Queen shrieked. "Well, don't just stand around, fix this man!"

The court pulled Ilosovic to his feet and towards the infirmary before the Red Queen called, "What's your name, kind sir!?"

"Stayne," he had replied with a wicked grin.

When the court cleared, the Red Queen swooned and collapsed into her throne. Red Queen, or Queen of Hearts, at that moment she wouldn't have minded either title. An immense attraction struck the both of them that day, one which the Queen would repeatedly site as love-at-first-sight.

"Did it hurt?" Alice asked.

"Not as badly as you'd think," the man murmured. A smirk played his lips as he recalled the day and the way the Queen had looked at him. The way Alice's face had turned from sorrow to delight when he found her was not so different. The Knave then knelt a bit closer to her on the tousled bed and stole a kiss off her lips. Though this time, she did not smile into his touch.

Leagues away, the Hatter could not find sleep. Something kept his mind stirring—cycling through emotions faster than he could put names to them. The biggest of which was regret and remorse, quickly followed by an anger that he feared would never be quelled.

It was shortly after dawn that the Rabbit had stolen away, sneaking past vicious Chessmen and stealing into the wicked forests that bristled with an eerie delight. The White Rabbit had to repeatedly shake his head to push the image away—he cursed himself when he thought of what would be done when the news was heard.

The Knave had taken Alice, their Alice, from them.

He needed to reach the White Queen's castle before it was too late.


A/N: Please don't hurt me with your angry words. No outrageous flames either, please. It took a fair amount of working myself up to not out and out hate the idea/hate myself for thinking of it.

I swear it will get "better" and the ending will be well worth it.