A/N: Hi guys, this is my first attempt at ff.
After trialling previously un-trialled homeopathic remedies, I ended up lying awake for most of the night and this story was the brain-child of the long, arduous minutes that silently crept by...secretly…secretly…
Disclaimer: I don't own Phantom of the Opera or Alice in Wonderland.
Chapter 1 - King of Hearts
Jaaque Divine stands at the grand entrance, looking up. He hasn't seen anything so magnificent in his life. The door is four times his heights and three times his arm span, made of something he has only seen small samples of. He has heard stories of the grandeur of this place. The architecture, the attention to detail. In the door, under the sheen, roses are carved in. So small and delicate, barely noticeable, but it's on every inch of the door. Why, it must have taken years to do that and such craftsmanship. The wide, fascinated smile on his face falters a moment as he realises that the man behind the amazing carving is probably dead now.
He touches the handle, laughing in disbelief at what it's made of. Black Unicorn horns. He supposed they had to do something with the Black Knights means of transport. He runs his fingers down it and focuses back on what the door is made of: Inkwood. He fails to remember how it's made or where it came from, but there is one rumour about it Jaaque would like to settle.
He places his palm gently on the surface of the dark wood and sure enough, it ripples under his touch. He doesn't feel the ripple, he just sees it - as though ink were trapped under glass. He notices also a sheen of deep green as it ripples again and he laughs, amazed.
"I can't believe it," he mutters, his eyes large with joy.
He pushes his hand on the door harder and it opens slightly. It's too heavy for him to keep pushing so he steps in, the door shutting again behind him. Jaaque Divine remains still. He hears music…but not any music. Proper music. The kind he hasn't heard in years and years. He'd almost forgotten what real music was. He'd forgotten what real architecture was. He cant help but close his eyes. The music brews deeper and darker - swirling almost - he never knew music to swirl. To fill every crack and crevasse, to replace gravity and hold you standing in a completely different way. Jaaque felt different. Twenty years without music and now he knows why Wonderland was such a bleak place. This kind of sound could change the weather- it felt that powerful.
He came to the Spades last, thinking it the least important. Wonderland needs an economy, it needs justice, it needs to be rebuilt. That is what Wonderland needs but now he knows that the Spades are needed. To add life to the place. Emotion. To put the Wonder back in Wonderland. This place, this music. . .it shouldn't be confined to a single opera house heard by the one person who lives here.
The music stops.
No warning. No slow decent into silence. It vanishes and with it, it takes the life and gravity and emotion out of the building. He blinks a few times, finally taking in his immediate surroundings. His jaw drops open. The walls and ceiling are all made out of Inkwood. He looks down, noticing the floors as well. The room is beyond his imagination. He always thought the palace was a grand piece of work but this…
He heard the Spades were unbeaten in architecture and this proves it. Even though parts of the building are destroyed, it is still breath-taking. The ceiling, though mostly Inkwood, has sections of black glass set in, giving the space light, but not ruining the mood. In the middle, hanging precariously, is by far the largest, most grandest chandelier he's ever seen, laden with thousands… no, hundreds of thousands of shards of black glass and diamonds.
"Shot me down and feed me to Grundlhurse. What a place," he mutters to himself.
He begins walking toward the centre of the room, unable to help but grin as the floor ripples beneath him. He looks around guiltily and starts changing the pattern of his steps. Finally he gives in and starts dancing on it, laughing as the ripples change, green moving around the floor. He laughs a bit more and finally comes to a halt under the chandelier.
"What a place."
"What do you want, Jaaque?"
The voice startles him and he looks around. The voice is powerful, strong. It could strike fear in a person…not Jaaque, but anybody else for sure. You don't see what he saw and experienced what he has and come out afraid of much.
"Ah…" he looks around the broken walls, trying to spot the voice yet knowing he wont. Cat told him he likes to remain hidden.
"The infamous Phantom of the Opera." He beams. "That's their name for you, anyway."
He imitates a spooky ghost sound and laughs, hearing nothing back.
"Nice place you got here," he adds. Hearing nothing, he sighs, tapping his foot on the floor letting it ripple. He still smiles at it.
"Behold our King," spits the Phantom. "A man entertained by flooring is to rule Wonderland. Joy of joys."
Jaaque laughs and nods, smoothing down his red hair and straightening his bow-tie.
"They are lovely floors."
"What do you want, Jaaque?"
"What's that music thing you were playing? It was…stunning."
"The half moon. The only one left in wonderland no thanks to your mother."
"Yeah…she never was a fan of people more talented than herself. Anyway, I'm here because I need your help."
"I'm really not the person to potty train you, Jaaque," the Phantom says, a grin evident in his voice. Jaaque laughs and takes a seat.
"I'm only five years younger…we used to play together, remember? We used to play Knights. You and Nadir were always Black Knights. You two were the cool ones. I remember thinking once - as you were tying me to a tree - how cool it would be to be you. And you - son of an Ace! Oh come on! Everyone wanted to be you. Aces were way cooler than being boring royalty…not that I remember your name…it wasn't Phantom. We just called you son of Ace. Your father was-"
"Do not talk about my father! Why are you here?" The Phantom was losing patience – along with people skills and manners. This is what Cat told him anyway. Jaaque decides to get to the point.
"There is a Queen of Spades alive. Not the same one your father saved. Her daughter."
"I thought the Queen died with my father!"
"No. That's what we all needed mother and everyone else to believe until we knew who to trust. All the Aces died and for that, I apologise. My mother was…" He grimaced.
There was no word to describe what his mother was and what she did.
"Heartless." Phantom fills in, his voice quiet but still haunting.
"Yes. Ironic, the most heartless woman Wonderland has seen was meant to be the Queen of Hearts. Beside the point. But your father did not die in vain - nor did any of the other Aces. All succeeded in getting royalty to safety. The original Queen of Diamonds is still alive and has a daughter. The White Knight died but his son - he was perhaps two at the time - was taken to safety. The King and Queen of Clubs died from illness after being taken to safety, but their son…"
"Nadir."
"…he is alive." Jaaque waits for this to sink in, knowing the two were friends at childhood.
"I thought he was dead," comes the quiet, almost inaudible reply.
The walls seem to enhance every sound and syllable, so the pain in the Phantom's voice is not missed by Jaaque. He waits for a cue to continue, brushing imaginary dust off of his red vest.
"And my Queen?" the Phantom asks in a hollow voice.
"Safe. Though…it is delicate because unlike Nadir and the others, she knows nothing of Wonderland or that her mother was a Queen."
"How can she know nothing of Wonderland?! Where is she?" His voice is strong again, the walls echo his demands, clearing cobwebs in their wake.
"She's not in Wonderland. Remember Alice?"
"She rid us of your mother. She deserves half of Wonderland."
"Your Queen is where Alice came from. I have the means for her to get here. I have the means for all of them to get here but I need your help. You know the Black Knights are still in full force. You know that for me to rightfully be made King I need all the royalty here and you know that for Wonderland to be Wonderland again, we need everyone. We need the Diamonds for the economy and to put a proper justice system in place that doesn't involve heads being rolled. We need the Clubs to help build everything that was destroyed, we need the White Knights for protection and well, as for the Spades…"
He smiles widely. "What's Wonderland without Wonder."
As he expected, there's a silence and he waits it out, taking in the grandeur of the place.
"How can I trust you?" the Phantom asks and Jaaque smiles.
"I've had the means to go and get the royalty and destroy them for the last year. If I wanted them dead, I would have killed them already. I'm not my mother's son."
"So you're your father's. How is that better?!" the Phantom scoffs. Jaaque loses his smile and his face turns cold. He stands.
"My father died under my mother's instruction. He died because he went against her and fed the MAAD House with information to get her overthrown. She found out! She killed my father! My good, kind father. I don't talk about your father. Don't you dare talk about mine!" His voice was loud and hard. He could get past the Phantom's lack of manners and friendliness, but assumptions about his father was something he would not tolerate.
"Who told her?" the Phantom asks. Jaaque swallows the lump in his throat and looks down.
"The Tweedle Brothers. They are with the Black Knights."
"The twins. I thought. . ."
"Yes, we all did. The MAAD House kicked them out once they found out they were using the science as weaponry and…they had to go somewhere."
He heard a bitter scoff from somewhere in the Opera House and sits down.
"Do I have your help? Cat said I could trust you."
"What do you need me to do?"
"At the moment? Just keep an eye on her until it's time to get everyone back. Don't tell her anything until that time. If she resists then, you'll have to force her here and show her yourself. I would prefer not to have it happen that way."
"What is her character?"
"Uhhhh, quiet, I believe. A musician, like yourself. Cat thinks she is no threat."
"Miss Cheshire Cat knows her?" the Phantom asks doubtfully.
"She's head of surveillance and security in the MAAD house. Of course she does."
"Do I have your assistance?"
There's another long silence. Very long.
"Will I have to be seen in public?"
Jaaque frowns, confused and stands up, dusting off his pants.
"What an odd question. Yes you will. We need you to make sure your own Queen and the others return safely to the palace. The Black Knights are about so I hope you know how to hold a sword better than a conversation."
"When do I start?"
"Is that a yes?"
There's another silence.
"Yes."
"Excellent! I'll be in touch but in the meantime…"
He goes into his pocket and pulls out a black badge shaped like a spade and puts it on the ground. "Your father's, I believe. Congratulations: you are now officially the Ace of Spades."
A/N: You know how every time you clap your hands it brings a fairy back to life? Well every time I get a review, I write a bit more of the next chapter! R&R!
Seriously, if you don't review, my Beta is a bit vicious. She lives for the reviews too. She's emotionally invested in this story already. She's sort of like a rhinoceros and a shark crossed together. Think about that people. Think about that, then review.
Okay, shutting up now. *taps fingers anxiously waiting for reviews*