Someone made fanart from a scene in this story! Kyaa~ I'm too lazy to look the chapter up, but it's the scene with the hug. :D Look on my profile for the link. Thank you, helvengurl :D!

Oh, and the latter part... they need some love to, people!

Chapter 8

"Wakey wakey, Alice!" Oz grabbed the sheets and pulled them away, leaving Alice in only her knee high socks and button-up shirt. She whined rather annoyed and curled herself up to a messy ball.

"Wake up~" Oz continued, pulling the pillow away from underneath her head. This still didn't get a response, aside from the aggravated and threatening 'Hau' that followed. Oh well! Oz smiled brightly and ruffled her hair.

"Early to bed, early to rise, makes a girl healthy, wealthy and wise!" He sing-sang before grabbing her by the shoulders.

This got a reaction from Alice. She sat up quick enough to startle her manservant and looked at him through groggy eyes.

"Ye mean sumhing witthat?!" She slurred out sleepily. Oz grinned at her, hesitating to pat her head and deciding against it.

"We have a new mission today!" He pointed out when Alice frowned at him (mainly because he didn't pat her on her head. Was something wrong? Or was he still angry?).

She huffed and sat down on her knees. "Another contractor?"

"I think so. I haven't heard so much yet."

She wondered who was going to come. Obviously her and Oz, and that would always include the seaweed as well.

Would…Break come?

She felt her chest tighten lightly and bit her lip to keep in a smile. At least if he'd come she'd have someone to talk carelessly too. She had a feeling something changed between the current trio, and she didn't like it.

After breakfast, Alice patiently waited for the carriage to get ready, occupying herself with a fruit in the meantime. The only sound heard in the room was Alice taking bites from a bright red apple.

"I didn't know you liked apples~" Break inquired as soon as he took actual notice of this. Alice didn't want to admit it, but she was actually pretty much overjoyed when he claimed he was joining the trip. She grinned with her mouth full and swallowed.

"Oh, you know. An apple a day brings meat on the tray!"

"I don't think the saying went like that…" Break muttered amused, knowing it was something Oz told her to keep her healthy.

"The carriage has been prepared." A maid who just came in announced, and Break dismissed her with a 'thank you'. Standing up, he smiled at Alice and the rest. "Shall we?"

It already occurred to her that Oz didn't as much as looked at Break, but after that argument he had with his friend no one would really do him harm that week. Alice, frankly, could be quite scary sometimes. Arriving in front of a rather abandoned, horror-looking mansion, Alice stomped her feet.

"What's with you guys and mansions?!"

No one replied and she dropped it, walking after the others quickly. Any other people from our century would never go in because it looked like a mansion of our scariest thriller movie, but this wasn't our century.

More like a cemetery.

"They do pick good sceneries, do they not~" Break commented when a single bat managed to scare the living daylights out of Gilbert. Oz had clutched his stomach laughing before Alice smacked his head saying he looked just as terrified for a second. Gilbert rubbed his temple, already feeling a headache coming from this practical joke.

And of course, noting everyone's moods and the entire mood of the mansion, an argument with Gilbert and Alice wasn't to be avoided. Everyone did wonder how they kept up – wasn't it going to get boring?

But of course, with something as interesting as cooked vegetables Alice had enough to complain about.

"Meat is tastier!" Alice claimed, her voice overruling Gilbert's. "If you want to cook something so badly rather than bake it, COOK ME MEAT NEXT TIME."

"STUPID RABBIT! I'll cook YOU next time!"

"Guys,"

"SHUT UP!"

X-X

Alice groaned. "It's really ironic we've lost them." She pointed out, looking around the place one more time. Thank god she was with someone else, or she'd gone… well she didn't know what she'd do actually; she was just happy Break was with her. Even that seemed ironic – but it would've been worse if she'd been with Gilbert. Not only would she get the worst headache ever, but she'd get stuck with him and his murderous glance in a murderous mansion. That didn't seem like a perfect situation for Alice, somehow.

So, instead for even bothering to call out seaweed's or Oz's name, she stuck close to Break and made sure his bright hair and coat didn't leave her sight. She almost wanted to snatch the doll away from his shoulder to blackmail him into staying with her. Not that she needed to; she knew Break would stay with her – but still.

She made a confused sound as she tripped over a carpet and fell down forward quickly, only to be stopped by Break's arm.

"My, are you nervous, Alice?" He asked teasingly. She growled and felt his silent laughter at her misfortune, and Emily's not so silent laughter at her misfortune.

"Hell no." She replied, pushing herself of him and his delightful warmth, glaring defiantly. "You found any of them? Don't legal contractors have some sort of sixth sense that their chains can feel something?"

"Aren't you supposed to locate Master Oz, then?"

She raised an eyebrow at that, wondering who gave him the permission he could talk back to her. She was not in a good mood, if he pleased!

Break shrugged. "They are probably not far away."

"You said that ten minutes-!" Alice widened her eyes. That tingly feeling. Oz's seal was moving! Then he would scream. Right? He often screamed then. According to seaweed.

But… but why did it hurt her?

"I-" Alice called out, stopping Break from walking and turning around just as she crossed her arms over her chest. She breathed in sharply – it really hurt!

"Alice?"

Was this what Oz always felt? Darn, she knew why he'd grow so panicky about it. But… it made her feel dizzy. It had to stop.

"Alice, is something wrong?"

Break could help her with this. Yeah, if he was close to a possible solution he should know to just get rid of the pain. Alice opened her mouth and all that came out was a sound not close enough to a scream but rather a strangle.

"Alice!"

The first thing Alice noticed when the pain had ended (it left her rather drugged) was that it smelled good. And not food-good, but something more like… warm-good. When the scent filled her nose she felt warm, to the point she wanted to snuggle to sleep.

Realizing where she was and what just happened (or maybe it had been a dream), she kept herself from dozing off and opened her eyes carefully.

Oh joy, it hadn't even been close to a dream.

"Are you all right?" She looked up and Break entered her periphery, a concerned look on his face. He was sitting on the opposite wall of hers, staring at her intensely.

She smiled lightly when she located where the scent came from, before frowning, perhaps this wasn't a good sign. Was it? She clutched Break's coat with one hand to signify it was really there.

"Yeah." She replied quietly, wondering if the pain had any after effects. Glad to feel it didn't, she sat up a little straighter rather than being slumped down.

He smiled and nodded, possibly relieved as well. Alice put one hand to her head and pulled her legs up.

"What the hell just happened?" She directly asked and Break blinked before answering anyway. It probably wouldn't hurt her to know, then.

"Master Oz's seal moved." Yeah, she was that far. "And usually when that happens, you only feel tingly. But because you subconsciously tried to fight the moving of the seal, it directed the pain to you as well to stop that behaviour. This is my conclusion though, I am not entirely sure. I'm quite sure it has never happened to my illegal chain before." He said, almost doubting to say it. Alice nodded, not responding on that piece of his past.

"However; I found the way out of this mansion. Perhaps we should wait outside for Raven and Master Oz." He concluded slowly. Alice nodded again, wanting to get out of the darn place. It didn't matter if she had to wait outside for a period of time.

To her response, Break stood up and walked over to her, holding out his hand. "Can you walk or do you want me to carry you?"

Now there's a question that needed thinking. She was pretty sure she could walk – but would she pass the opportunity to be carried? It seemed too good to pass by…

"I can walk." Alice decided on saying anyways, before accepting his hand and standing up. He didn't move to let her hand go; instead he tightened his hold a little and looked down at her gently.

"Are you sure?"

Alice blushed. He always made her do that! "Yes." She replied slowly, wondering if he actually wanted to carry her. That'd be pretty… weird?

Suddenly he leaned down to the point his face came so close to hers that her face exploded into three other shades of red, but he only put his forehead against hers. Did he doubt for something? Oh! She read this in the novels, didn't she?!

Suddenly he pinched her cheek. Pinched her cheek. Her eyebrows shot down in aggravation and confusion.

He smiled cheekily. "I'm glad to hear that~" he said before starting to walk to what he knew was the exit, her hand still tightly in his. Alice let it pass and relished in the fact the coat was still around her and that he didn't make any movements to take it from her, so she kept it right where it was.

After a small half an hour, Alice started to recognize things. Oh, thank god. She caught up and walked next to Break, thankful that they were at least nearing a familiar place, whether it is the exit or some other room.

"What happened to the contractor? Did someone find him?" Alice asked quietly, like a normal human would talk quietly in a quiet room.

"That's done; I've taken care of it."

"You found it? Wow. When?"

He smiled at her sideways. "I wouldn't say you were unconscious, but you have been dozed off for quite a while."

Alice scrunched her nose. "How long?"

"A little over an hour and a half, perhaps."

Once they had entered the front hall, Alice breathed a sigh of relief and let go of Break's hand, running towards the door and throwing it open. Oh, fresh air! It's better than meat at the moment, that's for sure! The carriage was still waiting patiently, but the servant driving it had long fallen asleep and Alice resisted the urge to through a rock at him to wake him up. They had been in there pretty long, she guessed.

"Wait in the carriage." Break told her with an odd firm tone to it. Too tired to actually complain, Alice did as she was told and climbed into the carriage rather clumsily before dropping down on the soft cushions. She heard Break wake up the driver and talk to him about something, but not what, and decided she might as well sleep as they waited for the other two males to come.

She was at the point she almost fell asleep when the doors to the carriage opened and a fair amount of people got in. Probably the others.

Upon seeing her, they talked a little more softly and she could faintly feel Oz's form turning to sit next to her, the light scent of his familiar soap wafting over to her nose one second.

She shifted. They were okay as well. When the carriage started moving, she decided to move around until her head rested on Oz's shoulder, and kept it there to fall asleep, faintly noticing Oz's hand grabbing hers in response.

I'm wondering, am I moving this story too fast or too slow? O.O Heelp~

R&R! :D