A Shadow

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Stealthy as a shadow in the dead of night,

Cunning but affectionate if given a bite.

Never owned but often loved.

At my sport considered cruel,

But that's because you never know me at all.

What am I?

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"He attacked me in my dream, giving me this and you're telling me to calm down!" Hatter watched as Alice paced the bedroom, pressing the gauze the Red Queen had applied to her arm tightly as told. Blood still seeped out of the white strip, her knuckles white from holding it so tightly. He wouldn't have believed she'd just woken up if he hadn't been there when she had. After sleeping for three days, he'd thought she'd wake up refreshed, ready to face the day, but her state showed otherwise. Her eyes where rimmed red and sunken, her skin was even pastier than before and her hair looked like a Jubbjubb bird had gone after it. The food one of the Chess guards has brought for her lay untouched on the glass table beside the bed. "Not hungry." She'd said, not even looking at the tray.

He didn't like it, this Alice who was deteriorating before his eyes. She didn't even look like Alice anymore, more like an Alice clone that the Lost Children had replaced with the real one. He saw the traces of fear in her eyes as they scanned the room every couple of minutes as if looking for an invisible enemy.

"Alice-" Hatter started.

"No. Don't Alice me!" she warned, a twinge of hysteria lacing her voice. "What's going on Hatter! What attacked me? I'm fed up of being left in the dark." Hatter couldn't deny the fact that his lack of knowledge was driving him insane-or at least more so- as he always knew everything. And now, when he truly wanted to know something, something useful unlike most of the information in his head, he was at a loss, and Alice was paying for it.

"I know as much as you do." He admitted regretfully. "The Red Queen refused to tell me either."

"Why?" Hatter shrugged, slipping his feet off of the bedside table.

"She said something about having to confirm it with her sister." He breathed out an irritated sigh and scratched his head. "How are you feeling?" Alice shook her head, collapsing down onto the bed. She looked so...pathetic.

"Like Crap. Like I haven't slept in days and my head is pounding. Terrified at every shadow. God, I don't have time for this!" Pushing herself up, she headed for the door. "I've got to go."

"Alice!" Both of them stopped when Alice opened the door. The Red Queen stood in front of them, smiling darkly as she spotted them.

"Ah, you're still awake. That's good. Come. We have much to discuss." She answered Alice's unasked question. Alice opened her mouth to demand and answer, but Hatter pinched her un-bandaged arm.

"What was that for?" she whispered to Hatter as they walked behind the Queen.

"Just be quiet and follow her. You don't want to anger your only ally now." Yanking her arm out of Hatter's grasp, Alice muttered nonsense under her breath, trying to ignore the images that had continued to haunt her outside of the nightmare.

It was only a dream Alice. Only a dream.

Yet the shadows still slinked around her, appearing at random intervals. The corners suddenly became monstrous creatures, hissing and snatching at the edges of her silver tunic as she walked passed.

Alice. They hissed.

"They aren't real." She muttered.

A-a-a-lice.

"Alice?"

Alice.

"I'm fine." She replied automatically to Hatter's soft shaking, as the shadows slipped away. Without thinking she grabbed onto Hatter, his presence and the heat from his hand comforting her. He's real. Hatter's real. They aren't real. Finally calm, Alice cleared her throat.

"Do you live here with the King?" she asked, looking ahead in an attempt to ignore the shadows. Turn your back on them, and they'll disappear.

The Red Queen chuckled.

"Why do you ask?"

"Just curious." Alice remarked, flinching as she felt something tug at her tunic. It's not the shadows, it's not the shadows. It's not the shadows.

The Red Queen smirked softly before replying. "My sister has never married. And my own king recently died."

Alice cringed. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be." She scoffed. "I had him killed." Alice almost paused, not sure if she'd heard her right. Everything else was twisting around her, nothing could be trusted. Hatter's real. Alice opened her mouth to reply, trying to find something remotely interesting to say.

"Oh." But she found no snappy comeback so settled with a limp one, walking slower than necessary behind the Queen.

The Red Queen continued. "He was a lousy husband, and terrible king. I was fed up with his antics so I hired Duchess to get rid of him." Alice assumed that she must have started to stop as Hatter started pushing her forward, his hand now pressed against her back.

"Don't freak now Alice." He muttered into her ear, gripping her hand as he saw her trembling.

"I'm not freaking." She muttered back. "Just...slowing down slightly."

The door to the 'drawing' room was large, ominous, like something from a fantasy film. It's marble look reflect light, repressing Alice's urges to flee back to the room, huddle under the covers and rock herself into gentle insanity. It would have been better than the shadows, better than the dream.

"Ah! Miss Alice! I see your feeling better." Alice couldn't help but grin as the bearded man in front of her stood from his seat near the burning fire place.

"Tobias!" she cried, enveloping the man in a hug, the shadows not forgotten but less of a threat now. "Thank goodness you're okay! What happened to you? How did you get here?" He was definitely real, warm, a factor no dream could replicate. Hatter and Tobias are real. The shadows are not.

"I followed Hatter of course." He replied, motioning to Hatter who was batting Lux away as he jumped around him in glee. "The guards never found my cave, they got scared off by a Jabberwocky and set on a new course."
"Our course." Hatter replied, grabbing his hat off Lux who had stolen it. "That's how they found us, at least according to her majesties."

"You say our titles with such bitterness Hatter." The White Queen said softly, floating into the room. "We have done you no harm as of yet."

"Yet." Alice heard him mutter as he walked over to Alice.

Her sister smiled and motioned to the table. "Please sit. We have much to discuss." Hatter didn't sit, instead he stood beside Alice, the fact she was still wide eyed not escaping his notice.

"Hatter tells me that you arrived in Wonderland about two weeks ago." The Red Queen said, pouring hot water into a tea cup. Alice nodded carefully, every so often looking to the few dark spots in the room.

"I believe so." Alice replied, taking the tea the Queen offered her.

"Nervous?" Alice looked to the White Queen with a questioning gaze.

"You're quivering Alice." Hatter whispered. Realising that the clattering sound she'd been hearing was coming from her cup she placed it in the small table beside her, dropping it as if it was a dead animal.

"How did you come into contact with the Lost Children?" the White Queen asked. "We'd think someone with Hatter's knowledge of Wonderland you would have avoided them." Hatter went to reply but Alice butted in, trying to rub out the ache in her head.

"It was my fault. I ran off without thinking it through. I was upset." The White Queen smiled.

"I'm not surprised. The forest can do that to people, especially humans, with you being such emotional creatures. Emotions tend to run wild in the Forest. It's best to ignore them as best you can while inside." The glace the Queen's shared wasn't lost to Alice who lent her head in her hands.

"Please don't keep things from me." She asked softly as she doubled over, massaging her head. "I'm fed up of being left in the dark." The Queen's nodded, the Red Queen replying.

"Very well. Where would you like us to begin?"

"Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end: then stop." Alice replied with a wave of her hand, sitting up straight as the ache finally ebbed slightly. Both Queen's at opposite Alice, Hatter finally deciding to sit, realising it would take a while to explain everything.

"This entire situation started about 20 years ago." The White Queen began. "Our magic supply began to drain for an unknown reason. It later came to light that our sister, The Red Queen, was abusing her right to power. It had been decided upon out parent's death that all three of us would share the land, and our cousin, Duchess would be our...back up if you like. If one of us should die before a successor was decided then she would take charge."

"Our sister has always been a vain, gluttonous, creature." The Red Queen spat. "It never came as a surprise when we discovered she was behind everything. But we never expected her to do it in such a way. She is destroying Wonderland with her pursuit of beauty and power. When she realised that her acts were killing Wonderland she stopped using up the resources here, and looked to the human world instead."

"She has been bringing in humans every three years, when her power starts to drain. We are the only ones who know of the human's presence in most cases, and sometimes we have sent them home but most of the time our sister gets to them first ...they are killed. Now, we ... you were brou... here b..." Alice shook her head in an attempt to disperse out the fuzz that blocked the Queen's words. Their lips were still moving, she could see that much, but it was as if nothing came out.

"He is our..sist...strongest ally..."

Alice knew that what she was seeing wasn't happening – correction, couldn't be happening. Things like that just didn't happen, even in Wonderland. The world couldn't just change itself, morphing into a twisted nightmare Krueger would be proud of.

Maybe I am just dreaming. She thought. After all, dreams are supposed to make little to no sense, the voice in her head a whisper, as if the very ideawas ridiculous, unthinkable.

She watched with wide eyes as the shadows slinked across the floor, worming their way between the chair legs as the Queens continued to talk, oblivious to the shadows' presence. That being said, even Alice couldn't look at them directly before they disappeared. Instead they appeared at the very corner of her eyes, disappearing when Alice took a look, like a child playing hide and seek. They knew you could see them, take joy and pride in that fact, yet they continued to hide, teasing you with each glance they allow you to have.

"They aren't real." Alice muttered, trying to focus on what the Queen's where saying yet every word was just a mumble, as if she was listening underwater. "They aren't real."

The lights went out.

The gulp of air she took in, felt like solid panic. She'd never expected panic to have a taste, or even a texture, but it did. Dark and bitter.

"Hatter." She whispered, as if talking to loudly would attract the shadow's attention.

"Hatt-" she pulled back as light flooded the room, blue and grey as if someone had just switched on the moon.

Alice was so close to screaming that her chest physically ached in the attempt to keep it down. This was wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong.

Pushing herself up, she scrambled out of the chair, trying to get as far away from Hatter as possible. But it wasn't Hatter, she reminded herself, this isn't real.

Yet it felt real. So real that the idea that she'd hurt Hatter made her feel sick.

The spot where his hand should have been was empty, collapsed into ash when she'd touched him. But he wasn't the only one, The Queens, Tobias and Lux were also frozen into statues, and she had no doubt that if she touched them they'd go down to.

The entire room looked like it was going to collapse any second, the walls covered in ash, mould and dirt, some of which falling onto the rotten food and dirty plates that covered the table. Everything looked like it was covered in snow, but she knew different.

Snow didn't smell of death.

The dark chuckle that echoed around the dead room wasn't the same as the one she'd heard in her previous dream. This one was darker, more...insane if it made any sense. Before, she was in two minds about whether the...thing – for she could think of no better word for it- was going to hurt her, at least until it dug into her arm. Even then, it didn't kill her, which is could have done easily.

But now, now it wasn't a light laugh, like the one people make when they're not sure whether they should laugh or complain about a joke. It was one you'd expect to hear off the Joker.

It was as if the first dream had been a tutorial level, now that it was over the real game could begin.

"Alice." The shadows hissed, flitting around the room, casting bat like shadows against the walls.

Her named was hissed again, but this time it wasn't the shadows. The thing was calling out to her. And it was behind her.

Turn around

Alice tensed.

Turn around Alice.

"Alice." Alice spun around as it called her, yet she met no creature, but a mirror.

It stood in front of her, the pane glowing a pale blue as it swirled with whites and silvers, shimmering in the darkened room.

The mirror was antique; she could guess that much from the ornate design of the frame. Fruits, plants and strange grinning creatures curled around each other were carved into the wooden frame, stained a burnt copper colour.

Cautiously, Alice stepped closer to the glass, pressing her hand against the cold pane.

"ALICE!" In Alice's head, she was screaming as loud as she could, yet really, she was silent, her scream no more than hot air being forced out of her lungs.

The creature's face was right up against the glass, but the on the other side as if it lived inside the mirror, trapped there. She tried to move her hands away but they stuck against the glass, the thing's face was as close to the pane as it could get without coming outside of its world. It looked like a puppet hanging upside down, that was the first thing that registered in her mind as it kept up the sinister grin. Tattoo's in pale blue covered its dark gray 'face' as it blinked as a reptile would, a pale glassy film covering its black eyes. Tipping its head to the side it hissed darkly.

"ALICE! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!"

Next thing Alice knew she was tackled to the floor, the creature's gray claws wrapped around her neck, digging into her skin. She felt the muscles in her neck tighten and release as its grip got tighter. Suddenly it gave way.

"Find the Cheshire Cat." Alice stopped struggling for a second, to stare the creature in the eyes. "He'll show you the way." The pressure returned as Alice screamed, this time the sound vibrating throughout the room.

Hold her down.

What's going on?

He's attacking her.

What!

Hold her down I said!

"Let...go." Alice choked, the creature's feature's beginning to fade into one another.

Find the Cheshire Cat. He'll show you the way.

Alice gasped as the pressure on her neck disappeared, replace with cold air that rushed to her lungs. Her eyes snapped open to find the White Queen hovering over her.

It was gone.

The thing was gone.

Bolting upright she grabbed her neck, blood transferring onto her hand. Everyone was silent, waiting for Alice to speak.

"I need to find the Cheshire Cat." Alice stood up fast, heading for the door swaying on her feet.

"You're not going anywhere." Hatter replied, holding her to stop her from falling over, leading her back to the table.

"Drink this, it will help with the pain." The White Queen said, holding out the tea cup Alice has discarded. Alice took it without complaint, downing it in one.

"I see you've met Morpheus?" The Red Queen said. "He always did like to make and entrance." Alice gave a bitter laugh, rubbing her neck.

"You're telling me." Alice lent her head on the table, the cold marble calming her nerves. The light of the room calmed her more than she'd ever admit. The thick, disturbing smell of death no longer consumed her, the dream land she'd been in was gone.

I'd never thought I'd be this relieved to wake up.

"What does he want?" Alice said, not looking up. The Red Queen spoke first.

"Morpheus has been working for the Queen of Hearts since she came to power, we believe that she is gaining what power she has through Morpheus, although the how has yet to be confirmed."

"Our sister often sends him when the card guards fail. You are the latest threat to her so she has sent her most powerful weapon to weaken you."

Alice frowned. "Weaken me?"

The White Queen gave a motherly smile."Everyone is mad here Alice. Everyone except the human's who appear here."

"What are you saying?" Alice chuckled bitterly. "That I'm slowly-"

"Going mad?" the Red Queen answered. "Yes. That's what Wonderland does. If you stay here long enough you will die in a world you create for yourself once the Madness kicks in. I believe our sister is trying to speed up the process."

Hatter watched as the last bit of energy drained from Alice's eyes. He knew that looked, seen it hundreds of times.

She'd given up.

The light in her had died and he'd give anything to let it return. Even if it meant putting pixie dust back there. Hatter turned to the Queen's.

"I should take Alice back to her room." Hatter said, shaking her slightly to rouse her from her dazed state. "It's a lot to take in." The Queens nodded.

"Very well. We'll arrange for a door to be created straight to the looking glass tomorrow. Alice needs to get out of here." Without replying, Hatter lightly tugged Alice along, like leading a child.

"Come on Alice." He said softly. "Let's get you to bed."

Alice followed obediently, the familiar feeling of dread coming over her, but with Hatter beside her she felt herself calm slightly. She could trust him, he would let her die. That decided it. Breathing deep Alice began planning.

She was going to get out of this.

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"Hatter?" Alice started, taking Hatter by surprise. She hadn't spoken for the past half hour, instead taking to staring mindlessly at the ceiling. He didn't blame her, he'd acted the same way.

"Hmm?"

"Thank you." She said, looking to him. "For everything. You didn't have to save me from the..." she paused, trying to remember the name.

"Lost Children." Hatter offered, taking off his hat to fix the ribbon. Dormouse sat sleeping in one of Hatter's shoes beside Alice's bed. Hatter had decided not to disturb him with the drama. He was just a little guy after all. Alice looked at him with a smirk.

"Not as in the Lost boys from Peter Pan?" Hatter looked at her over his hat, smiling softly.

"You know Peter Pan?" Hatter asked, now seeming generally interested. "We haven't seen him in years. Just disappeared one day. Since then the children have run a mock." He motioned to Alice. "That's why they were after you. They've been looking for a mum since he left, need someone to look after them." Alice laughed.
"That's probably the nicest thing I've heard all week." She muttered. "At least they weren't trying to eat me."

Alice wasn't surprised at her own calmness, the fact she wasn't shouting or throwing a hissy fit after being told that she was essentially going insane. She'd always managed to keep a level head, that's what made her Alice. Whenever anything went wrong in her family she'd find one family member at the door, begging her to help talk the other into sense. When her mum have been diagnosed with breast cancer she was the one who stayed by her, not crying like her sister had every time she saw her. She worked through it, smiling every step of the way. She decided at a young age not to let anything hurt her, to wait until the end, when everything was finished to feel something. After all crying, or shouting, or swearing wouldn't help anyone, just caused an unneeded ruckus.

But she still expected something, anything, even if it was a tiny swear word.

And yet she was totally calm, watching as Hatter fidgeted with his hat.

"I'm going to miss you, you know." She said with a sigh. "I'm never going to fit in back home, not after all this." She looked back up to the ceiling, the glazed look in her eyes one Hatter knew all too well. He'd seen it so often reflected in his mirror. She was reminiscing, thinking back when she should be thinking forward. To escaping. Surviving.

Watching her he couldn't help but let the tiny thought cross over his mind, whispering softly, like a child whispering a secret.

You could always stay here.

But he knew it was a stupid, ridiculous and insane idea. If she stayed here any longer she'd die.

Or end up like you.

Hatter shivered. That was a fate worse than death.

"Although," Alice mused. "I guess I didn't fit in much anyway." Hatter chuckled, fiddling with the ribbon on the hat as the idea of Alice being like him continued to haunt him. What if she did? The Madness didn't affect him that badly, he had good days and bad days like most people.

But she had Morpheus in her head.

"You should –um-probably go to sleep." He said standing suddenly, breaking the silence. Alice looked at him oddly.

"Are you okay Hatter?" she asked. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

No, just heard a very disturbing thought.

"Just noticed the time that's all." He laughed shakily. "I'll be next door if you need me." And he was gone.

Alice scoffed, looking back up to the ceiling. There was no way she'd be sleeping tonight.

"Deciding not to sleep I see." A smooth voice called out. Alice jumped up as she scanned the room with panicked glances. "Although," the voice came again, a set off large teeth appearing at the end of her bed. "I don't blame you." Narrowing her eyes, Alice pulled her feet towards herself, staring at the teeth with caution.

"I know it's you Cheshire." She said. "No need to hide with the fancy act." The cat chuckled, his head and body appearing from the purple clouds.

"Such a sharp wit for someone with a men-tal hospital in their future." He said, his tail flicking at the smoke. "And after you invited me as well?"

"I never invited you."

The cat chuckled. "Are you sure? I'm positive I heard my name being called." Alice paused. This is what she'd wanted, to find the Cheshire cat. To know what everyone else did.

"I called you once." Alice remembered. "But that was almost an hour ago."

The cat looked at his paws, spinning upside down. "And you've been in company for an hour. After all I don't have the cleanest slate." Looking at her wound her disappeared from his spot at the end of the bed and appeared beside her.

"I see that Morpheus has been sent for you. Caused you some pain?" he motioned to her bandage, his eyes watching it in a way she'd only ever seen in a cat.

Strange seeing cat like tendencies in something that acts so human.

"Um, yes." She replied, the cut all but forgotten. "But it's not that bad. It won't stop me from getting to the Looking Glass." Cheshire laughed loudly, spinning around in the air.

"Such a brave one. I trust you know that the Looking Glass has been moved?" he said. Alice nodded.

"Yes I-"

"And that its current location in none other than Morpheus' lair?"

"Wha-"

"And that you need a key to let the mirror take you home."

"Okay, that-"Alice froze. Morpheus' words still swirled around in Alice's head. Now it made sense. Maybe Alice's first impression was right. Maybe he wasn't trying to kill her. Maybe he was trying to show her they way home.

And pigs can fly Alice.

Shaking her head, Alice turned to Cheshire, smiling as wide as he was. "That's why I was told to find you," she said. "That you can 'show me the way'. You know where the key is, don't you?" Alice didn't know that cat's could frown, and Cheshire's expression certainly looked like one. However, Alice had never seen a smiling cat either.

"Hmm? Who told you this?" he questioned.

Alice stared back, trying to match his intensity. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you." The cat watched her for a while, as if trying to detect her lies. Finally his looked away, clearing his throat.

"Very well. I will take you to the Caterpillar, he'll know how to help you."

"The Caterpillar? What can he do?"

"Depends on what you need him to do." The cat replied, holding out his paws. . "Come on, there's lots to do and so little time." Alice paused for a moment, considering whether she should go and get Hatter. He'd helped her so much since she arrived here, saved her life many times.

But this is your problem, not his. Realising she was right, Alice stood.

And anyway, it's only a short trip. I'll be back before he knows it. I hope.

"How does this work?" Alice asked, slipping on a pair of shoes beside her bed.

"Simply hold onto me and I'll take you where you need to go. Everything will work out as it should from there." He replied. Alice nodded, taking one last look at the door.

"I'll be back here before he knows right?" she asked. Cheshire didn't reply as he held out his paws.

"Are you coming?" Taking a deep breath, Alice held onto the cat.

Here goes nothing.

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