It was the next day.
And, when Alice shuffled into the main hall, Jabberwocky was in a mood.
Glaring at Alice, he growled, "You will be eating breakfast in the garden today. I've work to do."
Alice stared at him in curiosity, "Why are you mad?"
"No need to tell you."
March walked in, dressed in his stiff general's uniform, bowed, and murmured, "Sir?"
"March, take Alice to the garden. Then leave for the warrens." Jabberwock went back to scribbling down words on the paper in front of him.
Smiling, March took Alice by the hand and led her out of the room like a true gentleman. But as soon as they exited the room and were out of ear-shot, he dropped her hand and spat, "Monster! You should have seen what he did to Hatter last night!"
Alice looked at March, confused at this sudden outburst, "Hatter?"
"Whipped him good and hard."
Blinking, Alice brought her hands up, "Is he okay?"
March nodded, "He's fine. You'll see…"
Hatter was waiting by a pretty little breakfast table when Alice arrived with March, grinning widely even though his back hurt like fire.
Seeing Alice, he strolled forward and rested a hand on her shoulder, "Mind if I join you for breakfast?"
Alice glanced at March, "This is what you meant by 'You'll see'?"
Nodding, March laughed, "Well… Hatter's been down lately, so I made this happen to cheer him up." He turned, waving a hand, "Now, I have to go. Don't go eating the Alice, Hats."
Hatter glared at him, "Now why would I do that?"
"Oh… oh… oh… just because."
"You cheeky little freak!" Scooping up a stone, Hatter threw it furiously at March's head, but March ducked and ran from the garden, laughing.
Alice gazed at Hatter as his face returned to its normal pale hue, "March told me you got hurt."
Flinching, Hatter grated, "Let's not talk about that. Why not sit down and have a bite to eat?"
Alice took a seat, watching as Hatter sat across from her with a twitch of pain, "Your back got hurt."
Hatter poured some water for the two of them, "It's nothing. Just a few scratches."
Smiling faintly, Alice took a small piece of bread and slid on some jam, "When I first met you, I thought you didn't eat anything but meat."
Hatter frowned as he surveyed the breads, the muffins, the fruit, and the jellies before sighing and grabbing a bran muffin, "Thing is, I'd prefer it to this. Kind of gotten used to meat rather than normal food. March practices a lot with fruit and candy. Not that I don't like fruit or anything, it's just…" Taking a bite out of the muffin, he smiled and swallowed the bread, "I'm not used to it."
"Why don't you practice?"
Hatter shrugged, "No reason to, seeing that Jabberwock is going to have us working for the rest of our lives."
Sipping at her water, Alice pursed her lips, "Can't you just leave or something?"
"What's the point in that? We'd be outlaws. The Imagineers wouldn't take us, and Jabbers would send out a warrant for our arrest. Be horrendous thing, really." Hatter had finished the muffin, and scooped another one up.
Alice crossed her arms, ignoring the two-times bitten toast on her plate, "Better that than killing people."
Pausing, Hatter popped the whole muffin into his mouth and chewed while pondering Alice's statement. He swallowed and leaned forward with a sigh, "Do I scare you, Alice? Frighten the living day-lights out of you? Do I make you want to run away and scream?"
Alice furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, "No…"
Hatter inspected his fingers as he continued, "Most people do just that nowadays. 'Oh, look! It's Hatter, that maniac! He's going to eat us all!' and then they run away. Same with March. But you just sit there and try to do something about it. The birds… the children… the riddle game, now that I think about it… You're always trying to be the peacemaker in a shadow world."
Eyes switching between his face and his hands, Alice muttered, "Okay…?"
Suddenly, Hatter was on his feet, angry, "No, it's not okay, Alice! You think you can save Wonderland? Do you know what the Jabberwocky can do? What he can turn into? He's worse than me and March put together! He's the bliddy devil, Alice! He can twist you around and around till he's done with you, and then he'll bury you just 'cause he wants to!"
"But-"
Hatter kicked the table, overturning it in his sudden fit of insanity, "Do you know, Alice? Question is, do you know? Anything from the Shadowlands is poison! And that's what Jabberwock is! Poison! He's killing Wonderland, and there's nothing we can do about it!"
Alice watched him in fear, remembering what happened in Imaginine, "Hatter! Please calm down!"
Suddenly, Hatter stood stock still, calm and bright-eyed. Turning to Alice, he smiled, "But that's just my opinion, Alice. I'm a pessimist. March's the optimist." Before she could do anything, he had her face cupped in his hands. He cooed, "But that doesn't bother you, does it? No, it doesn't…"
Alice tried to yank her head out of his fingers, but, somehow gently, he held her tight, "What are you doing?"
Eyes glazed over in pain, Hatter softly whispered, "Kiss me, Alice… Show me how it feels to love again…"
Alice stared at him in horror.
Kiss him?
Somehow, he was being much scarier than he usually was!
Hatter sensed her fear and confusion. Letting out a moan like that of a wounded animal, he moped, " Alice…"
Alice tore her head out from his grasp and, leaping out of her chair, scrambled away from him. Racing from the garden, she could hear him start to sob in pain and in rejection.
But it wasn't out of fear for her life…
It was out of fear of his love…
Alice had spent all day wandering about the castle in some hope she'd find a familiar corridor, or a useful staircase, but to no avail. She knew she was lost, and, every time she stopped a guard to ask for directions, they pointed her off in a direction that got her even more lost in the maze of halls.
Groaning as she hit yet another dead end, she turned back the way she came, sullen.
Another few minutes, another dead end.
Finally, she gave up and slid down to the floor in desperation.
She was lost.
A few minutes later, the clipping of sharp-heeled boots caught her attention, and she glanced eagerly up the corridor.
Jabberwocky turned the corner, fuming, but, when he saw her, he stopped, gazed at her, and then snarled, "Why are you here?"
Stumbling up, Alice walked over to him, "I couldn't find my way back to my room."
"March didn't assign you a guard?"
"Hatter was there."
Jabberwocky blinked, "Hatter? Hmm… March was making a gamble there."
Smiling, Alice shyly took his hand, causing him to stiffen, "Can I come with you?" Maybe being nice to this monster was the only way for him to open up and become friendly.
Jabberwock gazed down at his hand in Alice's, dumbfounded, then regained his senses. "Um… sure… I was going back right now…" Trembling, he extracted his hand from hers and hurried down the hall, nervous at the sudden display of friendship.
Alice smiled.
She had a new personal project.
Hatter paced his room in anger, furious at himself.
Alice kiss him?
Why in the blazes had he asked that?
Shivering at the thought, Hatter plunked himself down on a cushioned couch and pulled his knees up to his chest in search for some form of comfort.
He had just lost control, that was all…
Lost control…
And let his true feelings show…
Cursing, he leapt up and overturned the couch.
Yes, he had a crush on Alice!
So what?
But…
His heart and soul wilted to a depression as he remembered the fear and confusion in her eyes, the frantic pulse augmenting, augmenting…
She didn't love him…
She would never have kissed him…
Not for a hundred years of extra life in a regular Wonderland…
Hatter knelt and cried, his tears dripping to the ground with a steady sound of rain.
Curse it…
Curse it all…