Chapter 15! The end is drawing closer....dun dun dun

Disclaimer: I do not own Alice in Wonderland or any of the original characters.

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Time was beginning to run out; for all of them.

The coronation of Victoria was only two days away, and you could smell the fear. It seemed to have crept up on them; making them flinch and sigh when they realized Wonderland would be in her hands all too soon. Time was indeed running out.

Alice laughed at herself – that had been what is was all about all along, hadn't it? Time. The clocks were racing and the pressure was beginning to build. And when there is pressure, there is always a bang, and Alice knew better than anyone she would be the one to feel the consequences of that bang. Alice laughed again, giving a small amount of attention to the fact; she had laughed. Perhaps it was madness, perhaps it was derision being driven in to her. Either way, she was laughing. And at a time like this, it was not normal to laugh. In reality, she should by bawling her eyes out.

But she wasn't; she felt helplessly giddy instead. This she didn't understand, and if anything it scared her senseless.

The morning sun rose early, making it impossible to sleep any longer. The day had a determination about it; it would not let its participants use its time to sleep. It made itself known with yellow, golden rays.

The subject of time was not only haunting Alice's mind, as it seemed the very essence of the word was caught up somewhere in the air.

"Good morning," a strangely placid Hatter greeted Alice as soon as she came into view, obviously he, too, being caught up in the atmosphere of the day, "Did you sleep well?" It seemed like he was asking her more with his eyes, but then again, Alice did suppose she was going mad.

"I suppose so," she replied a little wearily.

"Bad dreams?" Hatter saw right through her.

She smiled. "Yes, I guess so."

He smiled back. "Was I in any of those nightmares?"

Alice blushed. Oh, so that's where he was going with this. Deciding it would be only fair to tease him back, she stood up on her toes – wobbling a little as she tried to gain her balance - and planted a soft kiss on his left cheek. The skin beneath her lips turned the same pink.

"No," she murmured against his skin, "it would have been a dream if you were in it – not a nightmare." She pulled back and grinned lazily, surveying her handiwork.

It was the Hatter's turn to grow quite rosy, though he did not seem to notice it through the shock. He stared at her through unblinking eyes, momentarily stunned by the show of affection. He tried unsuccessfully a few times to speak, but only managed to breath air with his mouth hanging open. It was then, with the Hatter's mouth hanging agape, that the Hare joined them.

"Have you caught one yet?" He addressed the open-mouthed Hatter.

"What?" Was what he managed to say in return after a long pause.

"Your mouth could serve as a fly trap, dear fellow," the Hare looked at him with a certain amount of envy, as if he wished for a fly-trap jaw also.

"Oh," was all he could say to that.

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Alice had been thinking hard – it was something that had to be done, even though she had been trying to put it off for a long while now. She knew now was the time for decisions, and to make matters even worse, the Hatter had felt obliged to tell her there were no more deadlines.

"I just want you to be happy," was what he had told her.

This confused Alice further. When one is under any form of pressure, and the wrong decision is made, at least you can put the blame on somebody else. Now that was no longer the case. The decision was entirely up to Alice; her future was waiting to be decided, so naturally she thought it was time to think things through. And hard.

The first, and hardest, matter to be solved was the result of Hatter's five-day-bargain (which according to him no longer existed). Bargain or not, a decision still had to be waited on, and Alice loathed keeping people in expectation. On one hand, Alice could not deny that she did like the Hatter a little (even though the very thought made her cheeks grow hot). And in time, it could be determined, that she would like him a good deal more than she did now. Besides, there was no shame in it; she thought him kind, good-natured, and very sweet (she tacked nutty and mad on the end of her list a little guiltily). Also, seeing the change in circumstances that her old life had taken, Wonderland didn't seem like a very bad option in comparison; in fact, it would be lovely in comparison to the whirlwind of reality that had blackened her old life. On the other hand, this was Wonderland. It was a possibility that she could walk out of here alive with her head held high, able to turn a new leaf and start a new life above here. It wouldn't be so very bad; she could find her own little house and live in it. Alone. She sighed. She knew where she wanted to be, but unfortunately her heart was going against all her common sense and good reasoning.

The second matter, and one slightly more threatening was that of her own life. Apparently, to Victoria it had some value to it – but she could not guess what Victoria would gain from her own death. She was just some lost girl; how on earth could she be a threat, if even that is what she was to her? But as to this second problem there was little Alice could actually do. It was a matter of time, this one, and when the right time came, she would know. Whether that time may be before of after her death she had no idea. The thought, as dark as it may have seemed, did not bother Alice. She no longer feared death – only the consequences it may bring to the ones she loved.

Alice rarely had time to herself anymore. Expecting Victoria and her cats to pounce at any moment, it had been firmly advised she is accompanied by a companion at all times. The idea made Alice irritable, but nevertheless she saw there would be little way around it, so she gave in reluctantly. That would be the explanation as to why the Hatter himself was sitting next to her as her thoughts drifted. The occasional frown or smirk would play on her face as she shifted through the problems of her life, and the Hatter would watch, enraptured, wondering what thoughts were drifting through her mind to make her react so. At one stage, she stared out in front of her, seeing nothing in particular; and it was only then the Hatter dared himself to hope he may be the feature of her thoughts for that fraction of a second. An hour passed, so he thought now might be a good time to speak. An hour was plenty of time to think.

"Alice?" He asked tentatively.

The were now sitting in the green of the forest (a favorite place Alice had taken a liking to recently), back to back, their heads not quite resting against each other, as it would have been quite difficult with the Hatter's remarkably large hat in mind.

"Hm?" Her voice sounded distant, as if he were had pulled her from a deep train of thought.

"Are you frightened?" The question was quick.

Alice breathed a sigh of relief. She had been expecting him to demand her answer; though now pondering the question, it was probably just as difficult. Debating, she decided to go for safe territory.

"What do you mean by that?"

Hatter shrugged, not quite knowing himself.

"Did you mean am I afraid of these forest? Afraid of Victoria? Afraid of her dreadful cats? Afraid of myself? Afraid of the future? Or afraid of you?" She cursed herself for adding the last question, knowing it would be pure luck for him to chose the one she had no answer for.

Hatter just shrugged again; he didn't really need to know at all. It was just to start conversation, not that he was holding up his own end too well.

Alice sighed, deciding to indulge him. "I'm afraid of everything," she was ashamed of the statement, "I'm scared I'll die, or I'll lose someone I love. It doesn't make sense, though. I'm afraid but I'm not looking for a way out of it – especially seeing that there is one. Does that make me truly mad?"

He wished he could see her face – at least that way he would have some guide to picking the right answer. He did his best on his own judgments.

"No – just extremely stupid," he told her with mock solemnity.

Alice laughed at this, seeing that it was probably true. It felt good to be able to joke like this with him; it brought some happiness to her heart when it otherwise would have been drowning in concern. There was silence for a while between them – though it wasn't at all uncomfortable.

Hatter, growing fidgety, poked her playfully in the rips. "And who would you be so afraid to lose, Alice?" Although Alice couldn't see his face, she was sure he would have been wearing an equally playful smile. She scowled into the forest; she really did let him get away with too much.

Poking him back in his side, she put on a dreamy voice. "Hare – I wouldn't be able to live. My heart would break," she listen to him sigh impatiently in response.

"Are you sure?"

Now she was serious. "Of course – I couldn't stand to see him or yourself get hurt...that's why if theres any trouble you have to promise you'll save yourself. You'll have to run."

Hatter snorted. "Oh please, you know neither of us will do that."

"You have to!" Alice pleaded.

Hatter just shook his head, disregarding her wishes. "Would you do that to us if the situation was reversed?"

"Well – I – uh...that's not fair! It's not the same."

He chuckled, knowing he had won. "Besides, who would you mourn after if I didn't stay and fight?"

"Hare."

"Not the same," he would wheedle it out of her. Just keep pulling and pulling; it would eventually come out.

"Fine," she was glad he couldn't see the rather embarrassing color of her face, "I would miss you. Happy?"

"Infinitely," he grinned out into the forest. "How much?" He asked after another long pause.

"How much what?"

"How much would you miss me?"

Alice rolled her eyes, resisting the urge to slap him. He was obviously aiming to lead her to some sort of declaration, and she would not give into these stupid leading questions; he was putting words in her mouth.

"I would miss every aspect of your incredibly annoying being," she told him coolly.

Hatter giggled like a schoolgirl, "stop it - your making me blush," he pretended to faint – still somehow managing to keep himself in the back-to-back sitting position he had. However he did it, it must have been marvelous, as a pack of strange-looking birds flew away from some nearby trees. Alice breathed out heavily, letting her annoyance drift off with her breath.

"Hatter?"

"Yes?"

"What would you do if I, uh, perished?" She smirked, steadying herself for a harsh, sarcastic response.

"I think my heart would break," he told her softly. "Not literally, well, it might – I'm not sure. But I know I would be extremely upset."

"You would?" Alice couldn't help the surprise that leaked out into her voice.

"I suppose so. I think it would be worse than that. I've never – I've never been through it, so it would be hard to say. Please don't go throwing yourself at death just to help me experience it; I think I would rather not. Can we not talk about this now?" His voice ended pitifully, "I don't like thinking about it."

"Oh," Alice didn't quite have the words, "sorry."

She could feel him shrug against her back; his shoulders heaved. "It's okay – just don't do anything stupid."

Alice managed to smile just a little bit. "Your asking me not to be stupid?" She was incredulous.

"Incredible, I know," he readily agreed.

Alice found herself enjoying another comfortable pause. It was refreshing; every now and then to be able to stop and enjoy the sunlight that had been so amply provided. It felt nice – this unspoken companionship and sunny day. It wouldn't be so bad to spend every day like this, to lay back and enjoy the world as if she had the rest of her life to spend as she wished. And in a way she did, but even those promises held restrictions. It would all boil down to whether she lived to make the decision.

"I hope this isn't the last time we can come out here," she sighed, her voice unusually peaceful for such a morbid thought.

"Don't worry," he reassured her, "it won't."

"Actually," a foreign soprano voice echoed through the forest, unveiling itself, "I beg to differ." It was horrible the way the shock had worn off, and the surprise turned to recognition. Without thinking about it, Alice slid her hand out to touch his. Perhaps it was a small goodbye.

"This is all very sweet," Victoria continued, her silhouette slowly emerging from beyond the trees,
and I would love to stay all day; but unfortunately, I have a schedule to keep. So lets get on with it, shall we?"

Behind her two cats, followed by two heavily-built guards emerged, already eager to have their time with the devastated pair. Obviously having already received some form of instruction, they wasted no more time and pounced on Alice, leaving the Hatter stunned at their speed. He tried to claw at their backs – anything to get them off, but their skin was hardened leather, making all attempts useless.

Alice had her eyes popped open, too frightened to squeeze them shut. Time and time again she waited for their teeth to sink into her skin; their razor-sharp nail to dig into her heart, but nothing even scratched her. The cats secured her down to the ground firmly within no time, leaving the guards with nothing to do but approach her solemnly. With a swift backhand, both the Hatter and Alice dazed off into black unconsciousness, the last feeling passing through her body was being dragged along the bumpy, forest floor, stones sticking into her sides.

Alice was dead. She knew it.

There was something painful about it, like she was covered in tiny blue and black bruises. Before her there was nothing but black, a vision stretching off into eternity. Her mind could see no reason, no possibility other than death. She was surreal; a being that was not entirely herself. Even the black around her wasn't just black – instead it was cold, and damp, and even smelt a little. She grimaced; she had expected death to feel somewhat different from this.

Then there was the light.

It flooded her vision, sending her spirits soaring. At first it was wonderful, relaxing; perhaps heaven was coming for her to sweep her up from this dark Wonderland. The light had faded though, as had it's appeal once a certain voice broke her surreal state. She squeezed her eyes shut tight, hoping that it may be enough to return to death. Death was blissful, it was the aftermath of the horror and the pain. But now it seemed it was back, back to hurt her and torture her and break her. She cursed under her breath, knowing all too well the death she had wished for would be coming for her once again, though it would not be nearly as pleasant. No, instead it would be horrific.

"Sleep well?" The voice Alice loathed chimed.

Alice clenched her teeth, quite ready to kill this woman for breaking her blissful state. Opening her eyes, Alice could finally see where she was. She must have confused reality with her dreams, as she now sat in almost pitch darkness, slumped against a cold, damp, blue-stone wall. The only light streaming in was that from the doorway Victoria was standing in. The room was small and dirty, and if Alice had strained her ears hard enough, she would have been sure to hear rats. So, Alice had been brought to a dungeon. The thought of who or what had been in here previously made her shiver.

"I hope so; you were gone for quite a few hours – I almost found myself growing used to it. I must say, Wonderland without you – even for those short hours – is a wonderful place. I think I grew rather attached to it, actually," she smirked at Alice, her eyes holding a frightening hunger.

"Release me," Alice's voice had intended to come across strong, but delivered itself as a tiny squeak. She wanted to slap herself.

"Okay," Victoria stepped away from the doorway, gesturing madly to the gritty hall. Alice stared at her, confused, and eventually Victoria burst out laughing at the girl, though no kindness was meant by it.

She chuckled again, wiping away a tear from the corner of her eye. "Ah, Alice," she sighed in humored satisfaction, "you do make me laugh." Then her face hardened. "But as the white rabbit would say, we are running late. I should have killed you long ago, but I think all this hunting would have made your blood all the more valuable, don't you think? Of course you do." She dismissed her with a flick. "So," she grinned down at the girl slumped on the floor, "let's begin, shall we?"

She flew her hands at Alice's neck, gripping the bone's as she did so. Alice gasped and struggled against her grasp, clawing at her face to try and reveal some sort of weakness. Her fingers left a red trail along her right cheek, making Victoria's hands loosen enough for Alice to pull free. Panting, she took a swing at the woman's stomach, making her crumple to the floor.

"Guards!" Victoria cried out from the ground, "Guards!"

Panicked, Alice bolted out of the room, tripping slightly over the bumpy stone. Already she could hear voices behind her, urging her to stop. She did not. Down the narrow corridor she ran, followed by another corridor, then another. She ran wherever her lags would take her, getting lost in the endless maze. She spied a staircase carved into the wall and climbed up it. She did not stop running, though her muscles begged her to. At the top of the stairs was a giant room, large enough to echo a thousand screams, although one would be enough. It was richly furnished; marble decorating every surface and rugs hanging from every sort of direction. The cries that had followed her had died away, and for the briefest of moments she allowed herself to feel safe. It was a bad choice. Slowly emerging from the double doors came her enemies, hungry for her death. Victoria lead the mass of cats and men, her face twisting into a fury that would consume blood.

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It's getting closer.....

Thank-yous:

StrawberryKousagi: Thank you! Abaddon is a bit of a sneak...

Verity Strange: Thank you so much – I'm glad you liked it! Yeah, Victoria and Abaddon would be terrifying in a romantic sort of way!

LizzySkellington: 'Finally' is just about right! He he – hatter and alice forever!

Miya: Yeah, I'm glad you did point it out! We needed some looove lol! Thank you!

Steamboatwillie1928: lol, don't worry – I think your funny! Hope you haven't been screaming at the computer for too long (not that theres anything worrying about that....ahem)!!! Thanks! (pocket-sized Hatter – who knew?)

DangermouseDavs: mmm...gingersnaps, twice as good as cookies! Damn, you spoil me!! Yeah, I've got a soft spot for Abaddon in my heart, even though.....*GASP* I can't give anything away! (hits my head against a wall)!!! Keep forming those theories!