Please see first chapter for disclaimer, rating, warnings, pairing, etc.
Author's Note: Again I find myself apologizing for the long wait. But I hit a bit of a hitch with this chapter - I wrote three or four versions of it before being satisfied with this one, which best leads into the action coming in future chapters. Not only that, I've become active in another fandom, so I've had those characters shuffling for priority with those from Alice for a while now. I'm trying to evenly spread my attention, but with the difficulties I had in this chapter, that was easier said than done. I can't say when the next chapter will be up, but as I said before, I promise that I have absolutely no intentions of abandoning this story before its completion. Thank you again so much for your patience and your support, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!
-Chapter 14-
Damage
Alice had gone through phases in her life when she had been afraid of storms, and loved them. More recently it was the latter, but suddenly she found herself swinging back towards the former.
Chills raced themselves up and down her arms as she watched the sheer fury of the storm sweeping toward Marmoreal. Icy fingers of wind were reaching ahead of the rest of it, whipping through the cherry trees with a ferocity that was downright frightening. Petals from the tree's flowers swirled through the air, ripped this way and that by the gusts that were growing stronger by the minute.
Standing on one of Marmoreal's beautiful balconies, her arms wrapped around herself to ease her outer chill, Alice faced down the storm and knew, somehow, that this was what she was supposed to defeat. Or, at least, a manifestation of what she was supposed to defeat. She didn't know the specifics, of course, just bits and pieces of warnings and clues and possibilities. But here was proof that what she'd been told since she'd returned to Underland was true. As before, there could be no more running and hiding, because, even though she still had her muchness, there was still a part of her that wanted to snatch up all her friends (and Tarrant, most particularly Tarrant) and make a run for it. Perhaps if she ran far enough, fast enough, she could outrun this destiny, too.
But no. There were too many people looking to her, as they had before, to save them. In the end all she really was, and ever could be, was Underland's Champion. Yes, she had found friends and perhaps even love as well. However, the hard truth was that those were just byproducts of the bigger picture, the destiny that had led her to that rabbit hole in the first place. The predetermined set of footsteps that guided her on every journey she took in Underland, and perhaps even Overland. As little as she liked to think about it, perhaps Fate was right, and she was just a puppet, a plaything. Something there for a while to amuse the Powerful Deities of which even Mirana was wary, then disposed of when they grew bored of her. Perhaps, in the end, her Wonderland wasn't so Wonderful after all.
"Alice! What are you doing out here? You'll catch cold." Something warm and soft settled around her shoulders, and Alice inhaled the familiar scent that was uniquely Tarrant - exotic fabrics, myriad teas, and just a hint of wood smoke.
She leaned back, tucking herself against his chest as his arms automatically lifted to wrap around her in addition to his worn coat. "I'm facing down my destiny," she said softly. The words hardly seemed to be her own.
Tarrant stiffened from head to toe, and suddenly his breathing was harsher in her ear. "Don' believe everythin' ye hear," he almost growled. His arms reflexively tightened around her, not painfully, but tight enough to protectively be able to jerk her away from a perceived threat without a chance of dropping or hurting her.
Alice blinked at the black clouds boiling closer and closer. There was something almost mesmerizing about the storm… "I can't afford not to," she replied. "If there is even a chance that Underland needs me again-"
"An' then wha'? When you're finished, ye'll go galumphin' back to yer worl' wi' nary a care for th' ones ye're leavin' behin'?"
Something painful and sharp twisted into her heart at Tarrant's words, which were bitter and hard and so painful to hear, and undoubtedly to speak. "I never meant to hurt you," she whispered. She wasn't sure he could hear her over the wind, whose screams had increased to a fevered pitch.
"Aye, bu' tha' don' erase th' fac' ye did, lass," he said. Now he just sounded tired. "Whether ye mean' tae or nae, th' facts are still there for everyone tae see." His head lowered against her shoulder.
Alice lifted her hand, wrapping it around Tarrant's forearm since she couldn't quite reach his head at her awkward angle. She wondered idly where his Hat was; just as quickly decided he'd left it inside to protect it against the storm. "If I had known how my leaving would affect you-"
"Don' say it, lass." Tarrant lifted his head. "Ye still woul' 'ave lef', an' ye know it." Despite his brogue, he sounded calmer now than he had before.
Would she? Alice wasn't as sure of that as Tarrant seemed to be. There was, admittedly, a possibility. But there was also a possibility that, had she known the extent of his feelings for her (and, in truth, the extent of her true feelings for him) at the time, she wouldn't have left. Oh, she would have eventually, long enough to give her family Above closure about her disappearance. But it would not have been so immediate, so abrupt and impersonal, that was for sure.
"Recrimination ne'er solved anythin'," Tarrant sighed. "Ah suppose we shoul' leave th' Past tae himself, an' only live in the Now, anticipatin' th' Future."
It was the future Alice was worried about. "Yes," she agreed quietly. "The future."
Tarrant's chest vibrated against hers, and she knew he was growling slightly. "Underland has always had a mind of her own. Someone can rule the inhabitants, keep the order and the peace - just as easily bring about disorder and chaos - but there's no ruling Underland. I have never felt more bitter about that fact until just now."
"So we're all feeling like chess pieces, pawns in a game." She didn't have to phrase it as a question.
"Aye." Tarrant shifted his hands to her arms, rubbing up and down comfortingly. "I just hope Underland decides to let me share more of the dangers with you this time. If not, she'll just have to hold her peace, because I am not letting you face another monster on your own."
Tears prickled the backs of her eyes, and this time they weren't caused by the sting of the wind. (Only then did she really notice that neither of them had made a move to return to the relative safety of the castle, despite Tarrant's former warning.) Subconsciously she'd been looking for some sort of affirmation from Tarrant ever since she'd returned to Underland, proof that he did indeed feel more for her than a friend for a friend. She wasn't sure she could use the word Love - that was a very big and dangerous word - but there was definitely something there. Though not phrased the way she'd thought they'd be, Tarrant's words were the avowal of his feelings that she'd been hoping for.
The first raindrops splattered on the balcony, big and cold. Painful, too, she realized when one rapped her smartly atop the head.
Tarrant's arms went around her again, and he bowed his head over hers as he turned her in his grip. Bracing her hands against his chest, Alice leaned her head forward, tucking it under his chin, feeling the flutter of his too-fast heartbeat under her fingertips. Her hair and dress were rapidly growing heavy with the weight of the rain, but she couldn't move even if her life depended on it (which, she thought ironically, it very well might). This was what she'd unconsciously been yearning for since her memories of Underland had returned to her during her time Above - standing in Tarrant's arms with nothing between them, though now, once more, everything was monumentally stacked against them. But this time they weren't going to shy away.
Finally Alice lifted her head, ignoring the raindrops pelting her formerly dry face as she looked up at Tarrant. His normally frizzy orange hair hung limply, sticking to his face since it was wet, dripping down into his eyes, which were the most curious shade of lavender. His complexion had phantom shades of color to it, no longer the usual pasty white she'd become so accustomed to over her time in Underland. His smile was wider and warmer than she was sure she'd ever seen it, the endearing gap in his teeth the somehow perfect touch to complete his familiar countenance that she felt like she was truly seeing for the first time.
And then he kissed her.
She'd been expecting fanfare and fireworks and for it to be utterly dramatic when he kissed her, but this was better than all of that. It was gentle and heartfelt, sweet and not just because of the honey-laced tea he'd had with breakfast. It was completely genuine and completely wonderful.
It was still raining when the pair of them finally came back to reality, as it were. Alice blinked, finally realizing that this time she wasn't as alone as the thought she was. No matter what Fate, or Time, or the Oraculum said, she had help for this fight. She wasn't alone, and though she was now realizing that she hadn't been alone all along, she really felt like she had real friends and real backup this time.
And, despite the storm raging all around her, for the first time she didn't feel afraid.
Alice vigorously rubbed at her hair, thankful for the plush towels and equally lavish robes Marmoreal had to offer. Despite the storm still raging outside, she was warm and (mostly) dry in her quarters. After combing out her hair, she retrieved the tea she'd been steeping and went to curl up in the chair by her lit fireplace to finish drying off and warming up, inside and out.
She'd no sooner settled into her chair than a soft tapping sounded on the door. Biting back a groan, she stood up and went to answer it, hoping whoever it was had something really important to say.
Needless to say she was surprised when she realized it was Mirana who had come to visit. The White Queen smiled apologetically when she saw how the younger woman was dressed. "I'm so sorry," she said. "I didn't mean to disturb you."
"It's all right," Alice said, because she wasn't about to tell the queen that she would have preferred to remain in the solitude of her room for the rest of her afternoon, until dinnertime. "Please, come in."
Mirana floated past her into the room, her skirt swishing slightly around her ankles. "To be honest, I wanted to talk to you before we all met for dinner."
Alice paused in the process of closing the door. "Am - I in trouble?" Had she broken some sort of unspoken, unwritten Underlandian rule in the short time she'd been back?
"Not at all," the queen assured her. "I just need to talk to you."
The two women seated themselves in the chairs by the fireplace after Alice offered the queen some tea. "How is Marmoreal faring in this storm?" the latter asked to break the silence.
The White Queen smiled. "The castle is doing well, but I'm afraid my gardens are becoming quite unrecognizable." Her lips trembled slightly. "When this storm is finally over, there will be a lot of reconstructing to do, though I fear the gardens will never be as magnificent as they are - were." She sighed. "I know we're asking a lot of you, Alice, and again. It hardly seems fair that you came here this time to escape danger, and we have once more thrust you into the heart of it."
Alice shrugged. "I've accepted it," she said. "I don't understand all of it, but I do know that as Champion of Underland it's always possible that I'll be called upon again to defend her and her people. It - it's an honor." The final words, albeit true, rang a little hollow to her ears.
The queen's smile slipped a bit more. Sighing, she looked down at the warm liquid in her cup, swirling it around a bit. "I know certain things have changed since you returned," she said. "I want you to know that I am not prying into either your or Tarrant's lives. But I want to do what I can to help you defeat whatever is coming."
Something prickled at the back of her neck. "You know what's coming, don't you, Highness?"
Mirana set aside her cup and primly folded her hands in her lap. For a long moment she stared into the fire, only her eyes betraying the inner struggle she seemed to be having. At last she turned away from the flames, meeting Alice's gaze squarely. "Yes, I know what's coming."
Leaning forward until she was perched on the edge of her chair, she gazed intensely at the royal. "My Queen, please. The last time I was here I was able to see from the Oraculum and was told exactly what I was facing. But now I'm getting nothing but vague hints and warnings, and I am nowhere near prepared to face whatever it is. Please, if you know something, I'm begging you, tell me. I need to know what I'm facing."
The White Queen dipped her head until her hair hid her face as she turned back to the fireplace. "The Outlands have always been a place that is a part of Underland, but separate from the rest at the same time. We are all a little mad here, but sometimes that madness, as you have seen, takes a terrible turn. Over the years every bad thing has been banished there, including - including my sister, as you know."
The hitch in Mirana's voice made knots form in Alice's chest. "Yes?"
"The Outlands have a magic all their own, and some, other the years, have learned to harness it and use it to their own advantage and purposes. But - until now - we have been able to beat back whatever they send us with ease."
"Something more powerful is stirring," Alice murmured, half to herself.
Mirana nodded. "Yes. I have not dared send scouts there to investigate, for fear of them being put in danger or even overwhelmed. As I said, the mysterious power of the Outlands, in and of itself, is evil, and in addition it feeds off the evil of its inhabitants. And I know of only one, perhaps two, people with enough power to create a storm of this severity and magnitude."
Alice's breath caught in her throat.
Squaring her shoulders and lifting her head, Mirana turned back to Alice, the pain on her face almost palpable. "I believe my sister is making an attempt to retake Underland."
~To Be Continued~
Poor Mirana. I must admit that I'm enjoying (as weird as that sounds) exploring her character in deeper detail, and am looking forward to some very juicy stuff I have in store for you all in the coming chapters. In the meantime, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and thanks for reading!