Once inside the Hospital of Dreams we walk passed the bizarre bug chasing receptionist and Jack says to me, while looking at my neck "where did you come by that amulet?" I just look ahead and reply "am the granddaughter of Chester Cattman, the Cheshire Cat." I can see out of the corner of my eye as he nods his head lightly in shock, and we carry on walking.
We walk into a large pool room with a old man with many books, sitting in a boat, in the pool, with a gramophone playing besides him. I assume this man to be Caterpillar. As we cross from the main door to the pool side I hear some of the conversation, as I examine the books within the boat and try to place the tune being played.
From what I hear Alice is getting very pissed about being talked about and not to. I tune out the rest of the conversation as I listen to the music and read the titles of the books, Emotion Poisoning, The Definition of Reality, The Why the World Was, Tea Syndrome: Stage 3, The Potion to Cure Emotion and Huckleberry Finn.
Id blanked out most of the conversation as Caterpillar showed us the patients and such, I even blanked out as we went outside, so I could examine the beautiful garden. Then Caterpillar and Jack showed us to a door. As we walk through we seem to be on a roof and I hear Alice mutter "Daddy" as she runs to the man "Who's this?" he asked shortly.
She stopped in front of him "Its me, Dad. Alice." Alice's dad scoffed. "This another one of your tricks, Jack Heart?" I stood to the side, watching the conversation before me "Don't you know your own daughter? The White Rabbit kidnapped you many years ago. And the doctors adjusted you to work in the laboratory," Caterpillar said, trying to explain things to the man.
I looked into my friends eyes and saw the fear and hope inside, the same fear and hope I'd seen in the eyes of my brother after from saving me from my father, in my granddad when she came to get me and in Hatter when id left him at the camp. The fear of loss and the hope of return.
I came out of my thoughts as Alice sobbed "Daddy" I looked to my crying friend as I heard "Don't--don't cry, Jellybean," her dad said, wincing at the sight of her tears. "Jellybean?" Caterpillar asked, Alice looked up, the hope from her eyes shining on her face. I remembered Alice once said he called her that as a child and said "that right! that's what you called her when she was little, remember?" now standing beside Alice.
"Yes, that's what you used to call me," Alice said, smiling lightly. "When my cat Dinah died, you held me in your arms for a whole hour, and told me don't cry, Jellybean. You remember how you rocked me? Here. Your watch." She walked over to him.
"We--we don't need watches here," he said slowly, his arm reaching out.
"Its broken, and it never kept really good time anyway. But you never seemed to mind." She slipped it over his hand, and clipped the watch's clasp shut. She smiled up at him, lost in the moment.
Then suddenly shots were being fired and I ran to Alice as her father and I shelter her from danger. The Minister of Clubs came, with dozens of Suits surrounding us, and Mad March at his side. "Where's Hatter?" I gave him a stern look as he got no reply. Then Caterpillar disappeared with a puff of smoke, and Alice's father denied her. As they marched us out of the hospital and towards the scarab, someone shouted "Three!" and then Hatter appeared from around the corner on a horse swinging a sword "Hatter!" I screamed.
He calls for Charlie, but the old knight runs away on his hoarse. The Suits grab him and pin him to the ground as March said "what a nice surprise" Alice yelled to them "let him go!" it was then that I raised my hand to Suit holding me and focused my emotions, sending him flying back with a purple shudder and then did she same to the Suites holding down Hatter, sending some over the edge.
I ran to his side and kissed him with longing then asked "are you ok? What are you doing here?" he looked up to me, his soft palm cupping my cheek "needed to make sure my girl was ok" he said, when new Suites grabbed us both up and then March came to us and tried to rip my necklace from me, but as he touched it a purple spark flew to his hand, shocking him away and I grinned my Cheshire cat grin at him as he had us taken to the scarab.
As we stood at the back of the scarab, cuffed and guarded, March came to us and said "the queen will be very interested to meet you kitty-cat" I look at him and say with sorrow "Flora would be so disappointed in you March" he stood stern and asked "what'd you say?" I merely continue "what would she think of this? Of you? That the man she loved has not only turn on his own people, but to the reason that she was tortured and killed, that he'd turned into a monster of all the things she hated and was fighting against" March slapped me hard and I could hear Hatter say "don't you fucking touch her!" whist fighting against his restraints in anger.
I just turned back to him, the bruise on my cheek healing, as he says "hold your tongue, before I cut it out. You don't know nothing bout my wife" I just say honestly "I know that if she could see you now, it'd brake her heart" he then just takes a step back, looks to his feet and walks away, over to Hatter and says "your girls got quite a mouth and knows a bit to much … Its your fault you know, that she's dead. If she weren't so busy taken care of you, then she could have taken care of herself." Hatter looked him square in the eyes and says "I was just a kid. You were her husband, it was your job to take care of her, and besides am not the one workin for the bitch that had had her killed now, am I?" with a punch in Hatters gut he left.