Sorry for the short chapter! The next one will be longer, I promise.

After managing to get into the Amusement Park without paying (which involved some well placed 'I'm the Foreigner's and Eliot threatening to blow a Faceless' head off), we walked around pointlessly. Truth and I stared up at the rides in awe, Elliot scowled, and Rose went on to tell me why The House was so much better than the Amusement Park.

"And besides, The House has the most beautiful gardens in all of Heart Country." She nodded, but turned to look at the hare when he scoffed. "Excuse you, but it's the truth. The Gardens Group specializes in flowers. Hell, our main profit is from Flower Water!"

"That may be true, but your gardens aren't better than Blood's." He certainly was loyal to the Hatter, huh? "His gardens are the most magnificent." I looked back at Rose, who had a sick smile on her face and a blood vessel popped on her forehead. She swung her umbrella, and I jumped when it shifted into a thin sword.

She pointed it at his throat. "Take that back, bunny."

He pulled his pistol out, pointing it at her head. "Never, daisy."

I forced a smile to my face and moved to separate them. "Let's not fight here, okay?" We had attracted the attention of all the Faceless guests and employees. I jumped when she swung her sword, and it shifted back into her rose-topped umbrella. She huffed. Elliot put his pistol back in its holster. He snickered.

I jumped again when some yelled, "Don't you start a fight here, Hatter's dog!" I turned on my heel, causing a(nother) tall man to nearly trip over me. He righted himself and scowled at Elliot. He had ignored me. Oh…kay then. That was new. Then he glared at Rose. Both straightened out, though the hare rolled his eyes. "What are you two doing here?"

They both pointed to me. "We're showing her around-"

"-Gowland."

"-old man."

Gowland? What a peculiar name. He turned to me, eyes wide. Then he smiled and shook my hand violently. "Ah, yea? A Foreigner, right? I'm Gowland, owner of the park!" My head swirled as he continued to shake my hand. "What's your name, darling?" No comments about Alice. Had he forgotten her as well?

"Gowland." Rose set her hand on his shoulder. "You're scaring her." Not necessarily scaring me, but he certainly confused me. Hadn't he just been angry? He was happy now? what a confusing old man… He stopped shaking my hand and let go of me. Then he circled me, examining me. I stood still.

He stopped, closed his eyes and grinned. "She's a cutie!" I flushed embarrassedly and covered my face with one of my hands. How could he just say that! He leaned down and looked at the kitten in my arms next. "Oh? Aren't you the little kitten Boris had been taking care of last Time Change?" Truth swatted the man with his paw. He grinned and stood up, holding his scratched face. "Yup, definitely the same kitty!"

"Truth!" I said, scolding him. He buried his head into my armpit. "Why did you do that!?" I looked at the orange-haired male with apologetic eyes. "I'm so sorry, Truth doesn't usually act this way." I grabbed hold of the cat and pulled him out to speak to him. "Say sorry."

The kitten looked over his shoulder, ears flat against his head, and roughly said, "I'm so sorry, Mister Go-Round." Go-Round? Gowland's eyebrow twitched, but he kept his smile. Was he angry with what had Truth called him?

"It's nothing. You know how young animals are."

I smiled, then smacked my forehead with my free hand. (At this point, I had been supporting Truth with one arm, my other hand holding the vial still.) "Oh, gosh, Gowland, I haven't introduced myself!" I shook his hand once, then withdrew mine. "I'm Marina Jenkins."

"Miss Marina, then? Ah, what a cute name." He smiled at me again, but it changed when he looked over at Elliot and Rose. I turned around, catching them mid sentence of an argument. My eyes widened. They had been quiet. "You two, show this young lady around the park! Take her on any ride she wants! You'll get to the front of the line with these," he pulled three yellow passes from his bright yellow jacket, "exclusive fast passes!"

Rose scoffed, "We were just showing her around. I'll take her on rides next time I come out."

"Which will be when, Rose? I haven't seen you since Vivaldi's ball, which was a long time ago." She huffed and crossed her arms.

"You don't have to be right all the time, Gowland." She walked away, "I'll be getting a lemonade while you finish your introduction with him! Elliot," she grabbed his arm, "come with me." He followed her, grumbling about her demanding nature. The older man smiled down at me again. Truth jumped from my arms.

"Truth!"

He responded with a snotty, "I'm just going with Rose, gosh!"

I frowned, but didn't say another word. I'd have to ask him why he didn't like the man later. Gowland sighed and rubbed his forehead. "I must've done something bad to make him hate me." He forced another smile and said, "So, how has Heart Country treated you? Do you enjoy it here?" He walked around me again. I nodded enthusiastically.

"Everyone here is nice! At least, so far." I looked up at him.

"So, who have you met?"

"WELL." I walked around him, and he chuckled. "First, I met Peter, then Rose and her girls and Bud. Then I met Blood Dupre, Elliot and the Bloody twins. Then Julius, then I had a brief encounter with Boris-he ran away. Finally, I met you!"

"Boris ran away from you? But he loves meeting new people!" he said, surprised. I shrugged and nodded sadly. I'd have to find that cat; I needed to know what he knew about Alice! Gowland sighed, "Ah, he's probably hiding in the woods next to the park. He loves it out there…"

He would be in the woods by the park? Perhaps I could go out later and find him… If I was completely honest with myself, I wasn't excited to go and see Peter after he had abandoned me on Clock Tower. Maybe I could ask Rose to take me to Heart Castle next Time Change? Tell her I wanted to explore in the woods?

I shrugged my shoulders again, trying to loosen them up. Ah, I had to go shopping still… Maybe I could convince her to take me shopping, then let me explore? Whatever. A Faceless employee approached us, grinning. "Gowland! There's a guest looking for you!" The man raised a brow, but nodded.

He looked back at me, "I gotta go, Miss Marina, but it's nice meeting you!" He followed the employee, mumbling, "Who's looking for me?"

I turned around as Rose, Elliot and Truth returned. The kitten was positioned on top of the hare's head, in between his ears. I almost laughed, but managed to contain it. Cuteness radar going off again! The mafia leader sucked lemonade through a straw, "Did Gowland run off?"

"Yea, someone's looking for him." She sighed, walking ahead. I followed her, and Elliot followed me. "Hey, instead of going to the castle next, could we go shopping?" She stared at me curiously, but nodded. I smiled at her, "Thanks."

"No problem, Marina." She turned to Elliot, "You coming with us, bunny?" I looked up at him. I honestly hoped he would. He was nice, and his presence was calming. Maybe we could become friends eventually? He gulped when we locked eyes, but nodded.

"I suppose. Just to make sure you don't force her into those ugly flamenco dresses." She scoffed sarcastically. I smiled; they were definitely friends, what with how they fought. "Are we going to the shopping district? Because that's a little ways away."

"Shopping district?"

"It's behind Clock Tower, in neutral territory."

"Ah, then yea." We had made our way to the front of the Amusement Park, slipping out of the gates and making our way through the crowd out front. Once we got back on the main path, I looked back at the people filing in. "There wasn't a crowd when we came in earlier."

"The crowd comes when it wants," Rose said. I let out a short 'oh' and continued to walk beside her. We walked in silence, but it wasn't an awkward silence. It was plenty comfortable. I wondered if I had just been accepted in their little friendship, but shook my head. I had only just met them, so it would be a while before we were friends.

Suddenly, I asked, "Hey, could we put off going to the castle for a couple Time Changes?"

Rose nearly spit out her lemonade. "What?" she coughed.

I sighed and looked between them, "I really don't want to see Peter." He withheld information from me, like a big jerk. I don't think I like him a lot… I mean, he was nice to me, but he did leave me in the woods.

"What did that stupid rabbit do?" Elliot asked. I looked at the ground.

"He left me in the woods. Alone." He also brought me here, away from home… "Augh!" My head thumped in immense pain at the very thought of home. I grabbed my hair and tugged.

"Marina!" Truth screamed, jumping off of Elliot's head. I collapsed to the ground, and the two Role Holders frantically tried to ask me what was wrong. Again, the pain was gone just as soon as it came on. "Marina?" The kitten crawled into my lap.

"Are you okay?"

I tilted my head; why was I on the ground? "I'm fine. Did I trip?" They looked between themselves and shrugged.

"Nothing, nothing." I cradled Truth in my arms as Elliot lifted me up. He scowled, "You sure you're alright?" I smiled at him; ah~ How cute! He was worried for me.

"Peachy." He nodded, quickly removing his arms from my person. I walked ahead of them, "Come on, I want clothes!" We quickly made our way towards Clock Tower, and I noticed the shops that lined the street behind it. I grinned and sprinted towards the one that read 'Boutique'. Rose laughed and followed me in, Elliot grumbled to himself about something, and Truth simply buried his head into my chest.

I set the kitten on the ground, and he wandered around the store. A Faceless girl approached us. "Excuse me." We all looked at her. "How can I help you?"

"I'm looking for sleep clothes, a couple dresses, shorts, t-shirts, socks, shoes and underwear," I rattled off. She nodded.

She pointed to the left, "That's our sleepwear section." Then she pointed to to the middle, "That's our casualwear section. Dresses, shirts and pants can be found there." Finally, she pointed to the right, a small section by the cash register. "And that's our lingerie section." I heard Elliot inhale through his nose and rolled my eyes. Was he embarrassed by the thought of underwear? "There's a shoe store two shops down. They're a partner shop."

I smiled at her, and she smiled back. "Thanks, Miss!"

"You're welcome." I started to walk towards the clothes, but she grabbed my arm. "Are you a Foreigner, Miss? I like to think I'm good at remembering faces." I nodded, and her smile widened. "Welcome to Wonderland!" I wondered why this place had two names: Heart Country and Wonderland.

I skipped off towards the clothes. Rose followed and said, "Oh, if I'm paying I get to pick out one outfit!"

I grinned, "Okay, you can pick out one."