"... And then I said, 'you wont go anywhere in life!' so then he-"
"Mad Hatter. Klarion. I don't care," Zatanna said scathingly, stepping over a large rock. Klarion's mouth snapped shut, teeth clacking noisily. For an entire twenty minutes, he had been babbling on and on about himself, all the while leading Zatanna to her supposed death.
She sniffed, the scent of coffee and spices hitting her like a brick wall. She sniffed, but chose not to follow her nose because the last time she did, she was shrunk and put on death row. Klarion was babbling something about a detour, but she was only vaguely listening.
The smell of cinnamon and herbs made her go back to when she was little, when she and her dad traveled to far places together and tried new foods. The foods weren't always incredible, but they made for good memories.
"Now listen up," The Hatter said, grabbing her wrist firmly. She yelped, yanking her hand back and balling her fists as she was torn from her reverie.
"Geez Louise," Klarion rolled his eyes, opening a white gate in front of them. "I was GOING to say that we have to take a little shortcut, seeing as the un-Birthday party is going on.." his voice trailed off to a mumble laced with agitation as he led her over cobblestone ground.
"What," she cried, grabbing his shoulder and turning him to face her, "Is going on? Can you PLEASE tell me... Anything! I came here through this hole in the ground, I landed in a pile of leaves that magically disappeared, then I drank a potion that tasted like mold that shrank me and now I am following a complete stranger to an 'un-birthday party' and then to my execution!" Zatanna's voice rose with every syllable until she was all but shrieking in the poor Hatter's face.
Dumbfounded, Klarion stared at her with his mouth slightly open, eyes wide. Regaining his composure quickly, he used his index finger to push her away, as she had gotten very close to him whilst screaming her life story. Or something.
"Personal space line." He said, tracing a line in front of himself with the toe of his shiny black shoe. "Don't cross it or I will gladly think of a dozen ways to kill you,"
"Really, now?" Zatanna smirked, taking a step closer. She fought back a snicker when she saw Klarion puff up, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Really. Don't cross it." He ordered, pointing at the imaginary line.
Zatanna took a step forward, placing her foot directly in the center of the line, leting out a bark of laughter when Klarion's face contorted with frustration.
"You are the bane of my existence, you stupid harlot!" He shrieked, throwing his hands in the air and turning on his heel, walking along the picket-fence lined cobblestone. Zatanna followed, cackling. Despite not knowing where in the world she was, it certainly wasn't boring.
The road was paved smoothly, the bricks smooth and flat. A house soon came into view, peeking over a large hill of flowers, their blooms the size of Zatanna's head. She gulped as a wasp flew overhead, its wings sending reverberating vibrations that she felt in her toes. It was scary, not being the biggest and toughest thing around.
"This.. is your house?" She asked dubiously, curling her lip. If Barbie were real and had a house, it would look like what she was looking at. It was a two story house, painted a pale blue. The shutters were a faded white, lacy and frilly siding decorating the azure home. Oversized carrots and pumpkins were visible from behind the building, their leaves and stems almost as big as the house itself.
"What? You don't like it?" Klarion sniffed, looking her over. "I doubt yours is better. At all."
"I live in a cave," she pointed out, brushing her hand along a rose petal.
"My point exactly, peasant." He stated, opening the front door, which had a heart shaped window in the center of it. Zatanna hesitated at the doorstep, looking inside. The smell of cinnamon was so strong now it almost gave her a headache. Rolling his eyes, Klarion held the door open for her, lip sticking out.
"I don't usually go into strangers houses," she said feebly, twiddling her thumbs. (A cliche habit, but she finds herself doing it when she is anxious.) Klarion just gave her a scathing look, a look that said, "Are you serious?" A look that made Zatanna tiptoe into the extremely feminine house. Despite the cheery exterior, the interior was dark and drafty.
"I must make a call," Klarion announced, going through an arched doorway, "Don't follow me. Peasant."
She stood in the center of a barely furnished room, the wood flooring dusty and worn. Scuffs and scratches littered the surface, and every step Zatanna took made the wood emit a loud squeak.
"I can't follow him," she whispered to herself, "But I can look around."
She walked past a statue of a lion adorning a crown, the features of the lion contorted into a ghastly roar. She tried not to look at it for too long, as it seemed it was glaring at her, the emerald eye of the statue following her.
"tnelis spets," she whispered, quieting the squeaking of the floorboards. Taking the steps two at a time, she quickly ascended the stairs, holding onto the railing tightly. The light seemed to dim with every step she took, her breath catching as she reached the topmost stair and her world went black.
She could still feel, breathe, and move, but she was completely surrounded by inky blackness. Squinting in an attempt to see, she was surprised to find that in doing this, she could see small glimmers of light. She approached a glimmer of light suspended in air, glowing a faint shade of gold. Her hand seemed to move on its own, reaching towards the orb of light that was pulsating, growing brighter. Flickering as she drew near, it shuddered when her hand brushed against it, as if it knew it were being touched. The glimmer was surprisingly solid, and Zatanna found that she could hold it in her hands. It felt like misty cotton candy.
"What is this place?" she wondered to herself, looking the orb over. It shuddered again once before dissipating in the air. Zatanna was left alone once again in the eerie darkness, except for another faint glowing...
The orb was a few feet away from her, hovering motionlessly. Curiouser and curiouser, she thought bemusedly, following it. Again, once she reached it, the orb disappeared, leading her again further from the stairs from which she came. In the back of her mind, a voice told her to stop and go back, but this little ball of light was much too interesting, much too intriguing. She let out a whoop of delight when she caught it finally, holding it triumphantly in her hands. It shimmered for a final time before exploding in a surge of light that lit the whole room like a lamp. Blinded from this sudden burst, she blinked and rubbed her eyes.
The orb was gone, and she was in a brightly lit room with yellow striped walls- not the pretty yellow, though. The peeling wallpaper was the color of mustard and lime, a sickly color that made her head throb. Her gaze slowly traveled down the walls, and what she saw made her shriek in terror.
She was standing in the center of a single beam of wood, two gaping holes where the floor should be on either side of her. She gulped, putting her hands out to balance herself. Robin would get out of this in a blink of an eye, but she wasn't graced with the abilities of balance like he was. She shakily took a step back, back towards the doorway that was now visible in the light. Her head was muddled with the smell of cinnamon and the encompassing emotion of fear, she couldn't come up with a spell no matter how much she tried.
A splintering of wood. A gut-wrenching sensation. Before Zatanna knew it, she was falling yet again into an abyss containing much unknown.
"What are you doing, you brazen harlot?" A condescending voice questioned. Zatanna opened her eyes and held back a scream. She was back in the first floor of the house, sitting in a red leather chair. Klarion was standing over again, poking her nose. "You must be useless at home, always sleeping."
"I'm not," she insisted, swatting his hand away, "I just went upstairs, and this glowy thing led me to this room and I fell and-"
"The will-o-wisps. Always making trouble," Klarion huffed, crossing his arms. "Don't follow them if you know what is any good for you."
"Thanks for telling me, dude," she grumbled, standing up shakily. Her knees were still wobbly, her stomach still flip-flopping.
"You are very welcome," Klarion sniffed. His attitude, his very presence itched Zatanna in the wrong way. The way he carried himself- as if he owned the world- miffed her. Wrinkling her nose as she dusted herself off, she followed the hatted boy with an irritated swing in her step. Sure, she could always run off and get away from him, but she had a larger chance of surviving if she stuck with him.
She could also use her own magic to grow to normal size again and be the biggest creature again. Hello Megan! She thought, slapping a palm to her forehead. I can just do that!
"worg kcab ot lam-"
"I wouldn't try it," Klarion drawled, suddenly very interested in his fingernails as they once again walked into deep forest. "I'll just shrink you back."
"How did you know... Never mind." She snarled, finger twitching. If she had it her way, she would be lobbing curses at him- both verbal and magical. From in front of her, she could see the corner of the Hatter's mouth twitch, as if he were suppressing yet another sneer.
The overwhelming stench of smoke made Zatanna cough, eyes watering. Klarion only rolled his eyes, walking the slightest bit faster. Small tendrils of smoke wisped out from behind a grove of broad leaves, the thick haze a light shade of blue. Curiosity winning her over, she snuck off the path and followed her nose. Pushing aside a leaf bigger than a small car, Zatanna spotted something that made her stomach turn. She suppressed a scream and threw herself backwards, landing hard on her butt.
A giant black caterpillar was resting on a multi-hued mushroom, humanoid arms coming from the front segments of the creature. In its human-like hand was a golden pipe that glinted in the faint sunlight. And, as if it knew of her presence, it turned its thick body to face Zatanna. A red "S" was etched onto its underbelly, whether natural markings or a tattoo Zatanna didn't know.
"Who," the insect spoke, puffing out a factory of smoke as it spoke. "Are you?"
The voice of the creature was again humanoid, a male voice that sounded eerily familiar, however Zatanna couldn't place it. Not sure whether to reply or run away screaming for the Hatter, she sat up, leaning on her knees so she could bolt if she had to.
"You just gonna sit there?" The caterpillar asked loudly, exhaling a question mark out of smoke, "Or are you going to answer me?"
"Um." Zatanna blinked, snapping her mouth shut, "I'm Zatanna, and I think I'm lost."
"Lost" as in following a complete stranger through a wonderland that she had never been to before. And she had been almost everywhere. Cautiously, she stood, not removing her eyes from the creature.
"I'm not going to bite," The caterpillar sighed, letting out a smoke ring. Zatanna coughed. "I haven't got any teeth. I bet my dad does, he has a lot of things I don't have."
A caterpillar with daddy issues. Zatanna tilted her head slightly, eyebrows going up. That was a new one. Despite all warning signs flashing in her brain, her heart reached out for the poor caterpillar. She could understand the feeling, in a way.
"I understand. I don't have a dad, but he was an excellent magician." She stumbled, her words coming out in a rush.
"He can fly, he is super strong, he is a hero..." The creature went on. The smoke had become so thick that it was impossible to see the insect, who was rambling on about his woes and angsts. "And, by the way, this mushroom will help you when the time is right," the voice said, sounding oddly far away and distant. Still coughing, Zatanna wheezed out a spell that cleared the smoke, but the absence of smoke revealed that the bug had vanished.
Alone in the clearing, Zatanna felt incredibly and totally lost.