Going Mad

All I could see was darkness as I fell. Then, a light appeared at the end of the tunnel and my entire world changed as I passed through that light and found myself in Wonderland... It was strange and I couldn't believe my eyes... I couldn't believe it... As this man stood before me, with his rabbit ears, and told me "Welcome back to Wonderland, Ameena!" He hugged me and smiled at me like he knew me. I sat there, confused.

"Who're you?...And how do you know my name?" I asked.

He stopped hugging me and hysterically said "How cruel, Ameena! How could you forget who I am?" He suddenly became serious again and said "No matter... You will remember in time..."

He had me follow him through a town and forest, listening to his rambling before arriving in front of a magnificent castle. As we walked in I could see maids and guards whispering to each other as I walked by. What was even stranger was that none of them had faces... This is such a strange world... He had led me to a guest room and had asked me to wait there. Of course, I had no intention of listening... I opened the window and jumped down two stories to land in a garden of hedges. I had to find out what this place was for myself and more importantly, how to get back home...

I traveled through the unfamiliar woods, realizing that I wasn't moving as fast as I normal would. It was as if I was walking in chains... My head hurt and I began to sway... Before I realized it, I was falling...

When I had come to, I was lying in a white room. Am I back at that castle?

"It appears she is conscious..." I heard a voice say and saw a man with long black hair, tied neatly back with a ribbon. He was wearing a business-like blue outfit and glasses.

I sat up, slowly and shook the fog from my head. "W-where am I?"

"At the Clock tower. I'm the watchmaker, Julius Monrey. You must be Ameena..."

Geez, did everyone here know my name? "Yes..."

"Peter told me of your arrival here... To bring you here and forget to give you the potion... That idiotic rabbit..." He said and shook his head as he walked over to a table. He turned back to me and handed me a vile full of a strange liquid.

"Drink it. It will make you feel better."

I reluctantly took the vile and drank the potion, praying it wasn't some kind of poison or something... My head began to clear and my limbs didn't feel as heavy. I got out of bed and began to overwhelm Julius with questions about Wonderland. He took his time to explain to me about Wonderland and the different territories: The Hatter's Mansion, The Castle of Hearts, The Amusement Park, and the Clock Tower. When he'd begun to explain the residents, I stopped him and said "Thank you, but I'd rather find out for myself..."

I thanked Julius before leaving, thinking about where I would visit first and wondering about the thing he called the game. I must be dreaming... I hadn't noticed the direction I had been walking and ended up at the Hatter's mansion. I turned in time to see an ax being hurled down on me and flinched in fear. I closed my eyes, thinking that soon I'd feel my own blood leaving my body, instead I heard a clinking sound.

I opened my eyes to see someone in a red coat blocking the ax with a sword.

"Awe... You ruined the fun!" The person wielding the ax said and for the first time I saw my attacker. He was a boy in a guard's uniform and there were two of them! They were exactly identical!

"What did you do that for?" he whined.

"I can't just let you go killing her..." My rescuer said to them. He was a tall, handsome young man with messy brown hair that somehow made him look even cuter. I blushed as I stared at my hero.

Suddenly, a gun shot fired out and we all turned behind me to see a tall man wearing military clothes with curly hair and rabbit ears.

"What do you think you're doing?" He asked the twins, frustrated.

"Stay outta this newbie-hare!" "Yea!" The twins shouted.

"Why you little-" He started and then turned to the one who saved me. "And what are you doing here?"

"I got lost!" He said with an innocent, happy smile, which totally killed the cool image of a hero I had for him.

"For the millionth time the castle is that way!" The rabbit-eared man yelled and pointed. It wasn't till a moment later that he realized that I was standing there.

"And who is this?"

"My name's Ameena. I'm not from here..." I told him.

He stared at me for a moment. "Ameena? Really?" He said and I swear I could see his eyes light up in recognition of my name. He quickly turned on the twins and started yelling, "And you almost killed her? Are you stupid? She's a guest! I should have your pay docked!"

"She's Ameena? Really?" They said, obviously ignoring the fact that they were being yelled at. They quickly dropped their weapons and ran past the man to hug me on either side. "Ameena!"

I stood there awkwardly as the man turned and yelled, "Hey I'm talking to you!"

A voice came from the gate and we all jumped except for the easy-going brown-haired man that stood next to me.

"Troubling the young lady, are we? Some things never change..."

"Blood!" The rabbit-eared man shouted in surprise.

I turned my head to look over my shoulder at the large iron gate.