Please see first chapter for disclaimer, ratings, warnings, pairings, etc.

Author's Note: Sorry it's taken me a little while to get this chapter up - Mirana was being a little difficult to write, then my power went out (thankfully I didn't lose my document when it did!), then my beta took a couple days to get back to me. But here it is now! Once more, thank you for all the reviews, and I hope you enjoy this new chapter!

-Chapter 5-

Investigations

Mirana would be lying (and though she was Mistress of White Lies, she tried not to make a habit of it) if she said she had not noticed the attraction between her Royal Hatter and her Champion the last time the latter had been in Underland. She had seen their looks and smiles. It had been too long since Underland had had a good Romance, in anything other than Fiction, anyway.

The Library at Marmoreal boasted the rather impressive status of being the largest and most complete in Underland. Shelf after shelf after bookcase full of scrolls and leather-bound volumes filled the enormous room, and interspersed chairs allowed a Gentle Reader the comfort of enjoyment for however long he or she wished to stay. Mirana had spent many an afternoon escaping into the Library, sometimes for business, sometimes for pleasure.

It was for the former that she was there today. For a moment she stood looking around, at a loss as to where to begin. Though she prided herself on being familiar with her Library, and able to lay her hand immediately on any given scroll or volume at any given (or particular) time, this was one instance when she didn't know where to begin. Prophecy? Afflictions? History? Fiction?

Blue mist at her side quickly materialized into Chessur. "It would seem we have quite the daunting task before us, Majesty."

Mirana hummed a noncommittal response and turned down the row of bookcases labeled "Afflictions." A headache was an affliction, and hopefully there would be some answers there.

Chess floated along behind. "Have you any theories?"

She paused with her fingers lightly resting on the spine of A Compendium of Underland Poisons, Cures, and Annoyances. "One or two," she said vaguely. "But I would prefer to keep them to myself until I've done more research. There's no point in getting everyone excited, and then being wrong."

"Perhaps we should consult Absolem and the Oraculum? Perhaps they have some input on this subject." Chess headed upwards to the top shelves, where he carefully ran a claw along a shelf as he read the titles of the volumes there.

The thought had crossed her mind, but Mirana had had a glimpse of the Oraculum less than a week beforehand, and had seen nothing in particular relating to either Alice or Hatter, let alone them together. And surely Absolem would have come to her if there were anything interesting or serious to report, though one could never be entirely certain when it came to the enigmatic and sometimes irritating blue butterfly who was Keeper of Underland's historical records.

Pulling down the book she'd had her fingers on, she opened the cover and flipped through the pages, scanning for anything that seemed even remotely similar to what was happening to her friends. The illustrations and chapter titles told of a little bit of everything, but nothing like what she was looking for.

So it went for the entire afternoon. Mirana and Chess poured over the Library's contents, finding all sorts of interesting things, but never what in particular they were looking for. The material on headaches in general numbered ad infinitum, and even the specifics had no mention of shared headaches.

Mirana closed the leather cover of yet another volume with a little more ferocity than she normally would have. Slumping a bit in her chair, she gazed at the pile of resources lying at her feet. Eventually she and Chess had worked out a system - the Cat would bring anything promising to her, and she would look it over as he kept looking. It worked faster that way, though, apparently, it was no more efficient than the pair of them searching together. "I don't know, Chess. We're no closer to answers than we were when we started, and…" She trailed off, holding up her hands hopelessly.

The feline stretched in midair, cracking his back and paws loudly. "Well, Your Majesty, Marmoreal was not built in a day. I seriously doubt we can find these answers in a day, either."

Mirana fingered the frayed edges of the scroll in her lap. "I hate leaving things undone," she fretted slightly.

"We all need sleep," Chess said. "And food. I do believe it is almost dinnertime, and you know how that Hare gets when we are late, after he's spent all that time cooking."

A quick glimpse at the windows proved the Cat right. "The entire afternoon is gone already. Hmm." Setting the scroll aside, Mirana got to her feet and subtly stretched out the kinks that had worked their way into her body over the course of the afternoon. "Will you help me again after the evening meal, Chessur?"

"The light will be bad," he warned. "It's best to wait till tomorrow. At your discretion, of course, milady." He sketched a mini-bow in midair.

"No, no, you're right." Mirana sighed, chafing at the thought of going to bed and trying to sleep knowing there was a job left incomplete, questions left unanswered. "We'll start first thing after breakfast, then."

Mirana barely had time to return to her chambers and freshen up before she went to the dining hall for dinner. The only one who had managed to precede her was Thackery, and she was pretty sure that was only because he was carrying dishes from the kitchen into the dining hall. "It looks and smells wonderful," she complimented the Hare.

His nervous shuddering eased for a minute as he fairly glowed at her praise. "Thank you, Majesty," he said. Then he bowed and skittered back in the direction of the kitchen. He was undoubtedly going to retrieve more dishes, though the table was already groaning under the weight of a feast not seen since Frabjous Day.

Mally and Chess were the next to come in, though they entered through different doors and gave each other distasteful looks. Mirana motioned for them to join her at the table, smiling when the twins Tweedledee and Tweedledum came in, arguing in loud voices over whether or not that had been the Alice they'd seen earlier in Tarrant Hightopp's hat workshop.

Mirana cleared her throat pointedly, and the two guiltily started and hurried to bow to her. "I can settle your argument right now, boys," she said. "That was indeed the Alice you saw earlier. She returned to Underland earlier today, and Tarrant, Thackery, and Mally escorted her here."

The Tweedles nearly fell over each other in excitement as they danced about with joy. They were still happily shouting when the aforementioned Champion walked into the room, her hand easily resting in the crook of Tarrant's arm.

"Alice!" The twins shouted her name in joy and ran to greet her. The White Queen looked on fondly as the young blonde greeted them with all the appropriate joy and enthusiasm the Tweedles were looking for, though Mirana was able to detect a kind of distance in the other woman's expression that had not been there earlier. She wondered what had happened while she'd been in the Library, but then scolded herself for wishing to poke her nose in where it was not invited.

"Sorry to be late," Alice said as she curtsied. She had changed from her torn and dirty dress that she'd worn when she first arrived in Marmoreal. Now she wore a beautiful creation done in varying shades of blue with silver piping, a matching hat perched delicately on her head. Mirana recognized both, since she'd seen them in Hatter's workshop before. She'd had a feeling Tarrant had been working on things for Alice, but this confirmed it. It made her smile to realize this.

"It's fine," she said, motioning both Alice and Tarrant to seats just as Thackery returned with what was hopefully the last dish. "You were not late, dears. We were all merely early."

Thackery finally sat down next to Nivens McTwisp, who had come in without Mirana noticing. Reaching for her teacup and spoon, she gently rang the former with the later and smiled. "Let the meal begin!"

For a while she was content to sit and allow the merry conversation to flow around her. Most of it centered around Alice, who was regaling them with tales of her adventures in a place called China in the Aboveland after she was begged. It didn't escape Mirana's notice that the Champion's free hand remained on Tarrant's arm, or the way that the tenseness in his body belied the fact that he would have fallen into Madness without Alice's touch. Once more she marveled at the bond her two dear friends seemed to share.

"I discovered several new and wonderful kinds of tea there," Alice said. "I meant to bring some back with me, but things were a little - rushed at the end, and I did not have the opportunity."

Tarrant's hand visibly tightened on his fork, and his jaw flexed. The White Queen could not tell if the motion was done in anger or regret.

Guilt once more poked at Mirana with icy fingers. Despite the fact that she was enjoying the meal fixed in celebration of Alice's returning, she couldn't help but feel like she should still be in the Library, trying to figure out what had caused the headache that had forced the Champion to cut her trip to China short, and Hatter to have to stop making hats. Though, at the moment anyway, neither of them seemed to be suffering from any pain at all.

Mirana decided to make herself stop worrying, at least for the duration of the celebration. Alice was practically glowing, she looked so happy to be back in Underland. She apparently wasn't allowing the problems that had brought her there to plague her, so she decided not to let them bother her, either.

In the end, Mirana felt a little rueful. She had planned several parties and balls in honor of Underland's Champion's return, but it seemed that Alice was far happier just having her closest friends around her instead of being the center of a large group's attention. It would be a shame to waste all those plans, though… Perhaps she'd arrange one or two little balls.

By the time the meal ended, Mirana was convinced of one thing. It was obvious that Tarrant and Alice's proximity to each other was directly related to their headaches - they were seated next to each other at dinner and showed no ill effects. But they had both said that their heads had hurt almost unbearably as long as they were separated from each other. Something about this tickled a memory at the back of her mind, but the stubborn thing refused to be pinned down and examined properly. Hopefully she would be able to capture and examine it later.

Almost an hour after dinner and everyone had gone their separate ways, Mirana was chafing with inactivity. As Chess had said, trying to do anything in the Library after sundown was pointless, for though there were several lamps, it wasn't the best lit at night, and even the bright moonlight shining in the windows wasn't enough illumination. But she couldn't unwind herself enough to sleep, and it was far too early for such an activity anyway. So she summoned Alice for tea, if the Champion so wished. She had a few things she wanted to discuss with the girl, anyway.

She was pleased when, only a few minutes later, Alice was announced to be at the door. Glad that the tea she sent for wouldn't go to waste, she invited Alice in and motioned her to a seat across from hers, then poured them some of the warm drink.

Alice accepted her cup with a smile, her eyes closing as she sipped at the warm brew. "It's so nice to be back in Underland," she sighed. "Tea just never tasted the same Above."

Mirana leaned back, cradling her own cup in her hands. "I always say there's something Thackery does to the brew," she said diplomatically. She had sensed Tarrant's reluctance to say anything that might frighten Alice into going back Above, and was following his lead. For no matter how much she felt like Alice had become the sister she'd been sorely lacking in Iracebeth, she knew she had to walk on the proverbial eggshells until she knew for sure what her Champion's long-range plans were.

"I have little doubt of that." Alice laughed lightly. "What he made at dinner was fabulous as well. He's quite the cook."

"As long as you don't interrupt him and get him sidetracked," Mirana agreed. She glanced down at her cup, debating whether or not to ask the question hovering right on the edge of her tongue. Usually she could pride herself on being patient, but for some reason, on this matter, all of her patience had fled. Her anxiety and curiosity was ruling her, and she couldn't be ashamed of that fact.

Alice leaned forward slightly. "Highness? Are you all right?"

Looking up, Mirana smiled. "Fine," she assured her. "I was just wondering if it would be all right if I asked you a question?" It felt a little strange asking permission of someone else, since usually it was people coming to her for permission to do things.

A soft smile curled Alice's lips. "Well you are the monarch," she said humbly. "If you would like to ask a question, I should think that would be your right. I will answer it if I can, and as truthfully as I can." Now she was looking a little worried, though.

"How long are you planning on staying in Underland this time, Alice?" There, she'd asked the question they'd all been thinking since Alice had reappeared. Now all she could do was wait for the answer and hope she hadn't frightened the Abovelander.

Alice looked thoughtful instead of frightened, however. "To be honest, Your Highness, I hadn't really thought about it. When I came down here, I anticipated that it would be for the rest of my life. Then again, I had not, at the time, anticipated that the rest of my life would be long. Now, however…" She trailed off and shrugged. "I think I need a bit of time to think about it. But I honestly don't think you have to worry about me vanishing any time soon."

Mirana felt the tightness in her shoulders and stomach ease a bit. Underland - not to mention Tarrant - had not been the same during their Champion's absence. She could not bear to think of what it would be like were she to leave again. "That is good to hear," she said. She knew her relief was quite obvious on her face and in her voice.

"I must admit that I did not completely remember Underland when I left," Alice continued, her gaze focused firmly on the rim of her teacup. "I remembered things as I went about life Above. But when I did remember…" The fingers of her opposite hand lifted to her arm, brushing over the scars left by the Bandersnatch. "Regardless, I'm back now, with no intentions of leaving again any time soon."

That was one worrisome item off Mirana's list. Now, if only finding out what was wrong with Alice and Tarrant would be that easy to answer…

~To Be Continued~

Thanks again for all the reviews, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Hopefully the wait for the next one won't be quite so long...