A/N: This might be the last chapter I post for a while, since I have some exams and traveling coming up. But who knows, I might be able to fit another one in. Hopefully things are starting to make sense with this chapter, anyway.

Thank you for all your reviews! I really do appreciate it. Hope you enjoy this next chapter!

The first thing Alice noticed when she woke up the next morning was how soft her bed was. The satin pillows and silk sheets felt like milk and honey to her stiff limbs. It was a wonderful sensation. She had never slept in such a gloriously comfy bed before.

Alice opened her eyes. She had never slept in this bed before. She couldn't be in her average-sized bed in her cramped apartment back in London. This bed was much too soft. And furthermore, there was no Dinah on her chest to wake her with the morning sun – the cat was on top of her every morning without fail.

Alice wasn't home.

She tossed the multi-layered covers off and slipped out of the gigantic bed. Instead of returning to her cozy, familiar room in London, Alice was still in the same room that she felt asleep in the other night. Sunlight poured in from the open windows and a light breeze moved the silk curtains by the balcony. Everything looked just a beautiful and surreal as it did the night before, if not more so.

Someone must have come into her room while Alice was sleeping: the fireplace was now light blue, causing the room to smell of lavender (another lovely yet nostalgic fragrance), and a white dress was laid out on a nearby chair. Like her nightgown, it was embroidered in silver and gold, but was made of a different material and had a more defined shape, suiting it better for proper daytime attire. It wasn't exactly a ball gown, but it was much different then Alice's usual casual clothing. She had never really cared for dresses, and Alice was already mentally preparing to ask the White Queen for her jeans and sweater back - until she put the dress on. It was perfect. It fit her in all the right places, and was colored to accentuate her white skin and blonde hair quite nicely. And it was so damn pretty. Alice felt like a princess in that dress. She was embarrassed at having such an out-of-character girly thought, and she silently reprimanded herself for it. But now that it was on, she couldn't bring herself to take it off.

She walked onto her balcony (which was roughly ten times bigger than the one back at her apartment) and let the sunlight give her a good look at this new land she was in. Alice couldn't help but gasp a bit at the sight. Nature reigned supreme in all directions, with never-ending forests and fields where Alice was used to seeing apartments and speeding cars from her own balcony. Instead of cars, the only movement she could see was a few creatures, both alone and in groups. Alice couldn't make out most of them in the shadow of the morning sun – but was that a winged lion that she just saw? She squinted her eyes and confirmed that, indeed, it was.

What kind of place have I tumbled into?

Not a sound could be heard, except the faint sigh of the wind that gently caressed her short yellow hair. Such serenity was strange to her after living in a city that never slept for so long. But she couldn't say she didn't like it. Even if this place was completely bizarre, it was beautiful. It was a land right out of some medieval fairytale – no honking cars, no highways, no technology to be seen. Only a humble road here and there, and the rest was pure green. Even more amazing, the morning sun framed the entirety of this expansive land in a radiant gold hue. It was a magnificent marvel to look at.

"This is impossible," Alice muttered to herself, more in awe then in real denial of her circumstances. Her thoughts then left the surrounding beauty as she pondered over her own situation. Now that she was calm and not nearly as overwhelmed as she was feeling last night (that's not to say that she wasn't still overwhelmed, however), Alice could think with a much clearer mind. Even if this is all a dream, she thought rationally, that doesn't change my situation. Hoping this is a dream obviously doesn't get me out of here. I have to act just as I would if this were real life.

Alice supposed it really shouldn't matter if she was dreaming or not, but she decided that if she was going to stay here, she had to carry on as if it wasn't a dream. Denial obviously didn't solve anything. And besides, everything here not only looked real, but felt real too, from the silk sheets of her bed to the wind on her face. She never in her life had a dream that was this vivid before.

But there was also her original theory: that she was insane. But crazy people have hallucinations – they don't physically pop into a brand new world just because they thought it up. At least, Alice thought so. But even if she was mad, so what? She couldn't exactly casually walk up to a mental hospital now, could she? No, she was much too late for that. She was already stuck in her mind, if madness really was the cause.

But Alice didn't think she was mad. And she didn't think she was asleep anymore either. So she was stuck in a magical land with talking animals and floating people - but a place that real nevertheless.

A part of her wanted to go out and explore this mysterious new land. A childish, curious part of her. The part that landed me in this mess in the first place, Alice reminded herself. But another part of her was already ready to go home. To Dinah, to fencing, to normality. More than that, Alice had responsibilities back home. She couldn't just abandon them. What would happen to her poor cat if she was left alone for too long? Alice shuttered at the thought. Either way, Alice reasoned, it was probably best that she found the White Queen as quickly as possible. Mirana could explain some things to her at least, and at best get her home.

Alice left her room and wandered through the palace for the first time. Everything looked just like she had seen in pictures and imagined a royal castle would look like - apart from the fact that everything was decked in white. The floors, the doors, and even the vases that decorated the hallway were pure, blinding white.

Not a human or creature was in sight as she passed though. It wasn't until she reached the grand staircase that she saw signs of life. At the bottom of the stairs, a dozen or so people huddled around the White Queen. They were dressed in fancy Victorian suits and dresses (that were white, of course), and were all chatting and muttering about each other excitedly. But once they had caught sight of Alice at the top of the staircase, everyone fell silent. All eyes gazed in her direction, with different levels of curiosity on their faces. Alice could feel her face burning. She had never liked being the center of attention. It was quite discomforting, the way everyone was gaping at her, like she was a two-headed pig. (Of course, a two-headed pig could've been common in this place for all she knew.)

Mirana, with her uncanny ability to read Alice's mind (or maybe she was just that easy to read?), frowned slightly and broke the observers attention with a sharp clap of her hands. In a second all but the Queen had dispersed. With everyone gone, a bright smile lit up the queen's face and she waved Alice to come down the stairs with her tiny hands.

"Good morning, Alice!" said Mirana pleasantly. "I hope you found everything to your liking?"

"Everything was wonderful, thank you," Alice said while attempting to curtsy. It was much easier to do so in an actual dress, but it was still a strange and awkward gesture to her. She had never needed to curtsy before in her life, so she wasn't quite sure if she was doing it right

"Good good," said the queen briskly before taking Alice by the hand and leading her away. "Now, we have much business to attend to, so if you would follow me, my dear."

"Actually, your Majesty, I wanted to discuss with you –"

"Of course my dear," said Mirana, quickly yet politely cutting Alice off as she gently pushed the young woman from behind, hurrying them both along. "But there's something we must do first."

The two of them walked through a wide white doorway off to the side of the grand staircase. It was a kitchen, Alice realized. The biggest and most exquisite kitchen she had ever seen. Like everything else in the castle, it was bathed in marble white. Sunlight spewed from the gothic windows, highlighting the various pots, pans, bowls, and other familiar (and not so familiar) culinary items scattered on the walls and across a large table at the center of the room. The White Queen floated over to the table and began to pick and choose items from the different containers, moving as gracefully and lightly as a ghost as she did her work.

After a few seconds with neither of them talking (though the queen was humming to herself quite cheerfully), Alice supposed she might as well be the first one to speak.

"Your Highness, you've been very kind to me since I've arrived in…" she struggled to remember the name, "…Underland." That was it. "But you have to understand, I need to get home. I have a job and an academic life to upkeep, as well as my cat Dinah to take care of. Though this a very lovely place you keep, I was hoping you could tell me how I got here and how exactly I could get ho –" Alice paused, and her eyes widened. "Your Majesty…what are you doing?"

It was the eye that did it. While Alice was talking the White Queen had been putting various unrecognizable ingredients into a boiling pot. Alice hadn't paid them much mind…until the queen picked a large, sticky eye from one of the containers. She could feel her stomach twist with revulsion as it plopped into the pot, causing the substance's mist to turn a purplish-orange. Alice had to struggle to keep a look of disgust and horror from her face.

Mirana, however, seemed very nonchalant about dropping an eye into a boiling pot, like it was something one did every day. She continued to hum cheerfully as she took a large spoon and held it in front of Alice's face. "Spit."

"What?"

"I need some sort of physical extraction for this potion to work. It's either your saliva, your blood or your urine, my dear. I would have supposed this would be the more preferable option for you," said the queen coolly, with that off-grin still plastered on her face.

Alice spit into the spoon, too eager to get out of the kitchen to ask questions; she had noticed other various human and non-human appendages and organs on the shelves (now that she knew that such things could exist in the queen's kitchen) and although she didn't normally have a problem seeing animal organs as a biology student, the thought of mixing human body parts into food and potions made her ready to retch. As Mirana poured the saliva into the pot, the mist again changed color to a dark, murky green.

"That should do it," said the White Queen pleasantly, setting the spoon on the table and suspending her arms in midair once again. "I would give it an hour, maybe two." She turned to Alice and smiled. "Go off and do as you wish until then."

"B-but your Majesty," said Alice, her voice rising in her urgency, "I have to get home now."

"The guards will lead you out back," said Mirana as if she hadn't heard, waving towards two white knights who stood at the door. "Your Bandersnatch will be very happy to see you again. Perhaps you can take him out for a ride."

Alice looked at her blankly. "My what?"

But much to her exasperation, the queen simply waved Alice out of the room without another word. With a sigh, she followed the silent white knights as they left the castle and eventually reached a crudely made wooden hut. The knights motioned for her to go inside. Alice slowly pushed open the door and peeked inside the hut.

She gasped with horror.

It was…Alice had no idea what it was. It was massive, with long claws and jagged teeth. Even though it was asleep, it still looked absolutely ferocious.

"M-my Bander-what?" whispered Alice, but the knights had disappeared. And the creature had woken up.

One of its tiny eyes popped open at the sound of the door's squeak. A scream caught in Alice's throat as the creature stood up and started to make its way toward her. Petrified with fear, she couldn't react before the animal lunged at her. Alice was pinned underneath the creature's massive body in less than a second, its face just an inch or two away from hers. Her heart pounding, she squeezed her eyes shut and prepared for the rows of shark teeth to tear her apart.

But instead, Alice only felt wetness. It was the wet slobber of the creature's tongue licking on her face. Maybe it's going to eat me, she thought at first, but it just kept licking her, tickling her with its tongue until she couldn't help but giggle. Opening her eyes, Alice could see that the Bandersnatch was panting happily, its ears perked up and its golden eyes sparkling.

"Why…why you're nothing but an oversized puppy, aren't you?" said Alice with a smile. Still pinned to the ground, she tentatively reached up and began to scratch the Bandersnatch behind its ears. It closed its eyes and began to wag its enormous tail, causing the earth to tremble as it rapidly pounded against the ground. Alice laughed. It really was no more than a giant friendly dog.

The Bandersnatch backed away and allowed Alice to get back on her feet again before kneeling down in front of her. She guessed that she was supposed to ride it, but she hadn't ridden any sort of creature before in her life – she didn't even have her driver's license yet.

"No time like the present," muttered Alice, swinging herself onto the Bandersnatch with surprising ease. The feel of the creature's fur as she sat on it felt familiar in some strange way. But it couldn't have been familiar…could it? She had never seen this animal in her life. But then why did she feel like she knew how to ride it?

"This place just gets more and more confusing," muttered Alice. She sighed, then patted the creature on its side and said, "Want to take a look around?"

As if the Bandersnatch could understand her, the creature suddenly took off at a frightening speed. She dug her fingers to its fur, clinging for dear life. But after just a few minutes Alice found that she could stay on the creature perfectly fine. She soon felt comfortable enough to trust the Bandersnatch and look around. They sped through green fields until they reached the top of a high hill, where the Bandersnatch finally slowed to a stop.

It was quite a sight, even more beautiful then what she saw from the balcony that morning. She could see the grass roll and the trees sway beneath the wind. From where she was sitting, Alice could also see a hedge maze at the bottom of the hill. And a familiar white dot right at the entrance of it.

"Down there," pointed Alice, and the Bandersnatch tumbled down the hill, the wind whipping her face and stinging her eyes. In less than two seconds they had reached the entrance of the maze, and Alice spotted the white rabbit in his waistcoat dash into it. Alice groaned, and said "Wait here," to the Bandersnatch before taking off after the white rabbit (once again).

It didn't take her long to find it. It was trapped at a dead end of the maze when Alice reached it. The poor thing was quivering like a leaf. Alice frowned.

"Relax; I'm not going to hurt you," she said in a tender voice, "I just want some answers, that's all."

"O-oh, Ah, of course," said the white rabbit, "You're Alice, I know you wouldn't hurt me." It let out a nervous laugh, seeming to calm down a bit. "I'm afraid it's just my nature to be a bit over-anxious, you see."

"What's your name?" asked Alice, kneeling down to where she could look straight into the rabbit's eyes.

"Nivens McTwisp, at your service m' lady," said the rabbit politely. Alice grinned as McTwisp gave her a gentlemen-like little bow. "Timekeeper of Underland."

"What does that mean?" asked Alice with furrowed brows.

"It means I keep Time, of course," said McTwisp, puffing out his white chest with pride. "You see, Time does not exist here in Underland. I am the only one who knows how to use it, because I am the only one who can travel to Upperland, where Time lives, and where you live as well."

"There's no such thing as time here?" asked Alice incredulously.

"Thus me being the Timekeeper, Alice," McTwisp chuckled. "The others here know of Time, but they don't really know who he is. They always speak of him, but they've never met him, you see."

Alice shook her head in disbelief. "I'm quite puzzled, Mr. McTwisp, and you seem smart. Perhaps you'll be able to answer some of my questions?"

Perking its ears, the rabbit responded, "I will try my best to answer them, though I can't promise that I'll always be able to. You know, Time and Fate love to have their secrets, even if they're not always worth much in the end."

Choosing to ignore the confusion of his last statement, she said, "Okay, here's one: why did you lead me out of my apartment and into the rabbit hole?"

"Oh, that's simple," said McTwisp with a smile. "The Oraculum prophesized that I would."

"What's that?" asked Alice, sitting down beside the rabbit under the shade of the hedges.

"It's tells us all that has been and will be. Well, it's doesn't exactly tell us all that will be; it writes itself as it goes along."

"So, it tells the future?" For once, Alice wasn't surprised. She supposed that she should stop being surprised at hearing and seeing such impossible stuff while she was here, anyway. It made it easier for her to go along with everything.

"It writes the future. Or draws it, more accurately. It told us that I was to bring you back to Underland, but it has yet to tell us why you had to come back," said McTwisp.

"Wait, wait – back?" said Alice in disbelief. "I've never been here before in my life. How am I supposed to be coming back to a place I never went to in the first place?"

"Ah, but you did," said McTwisp, though a bit less confidently. "You were Underland's greatest Champion: you dethroned the Red Queen and slayed the Jabberwocky –"

"I've slain the what?" said Alice incredulously. "Mr. McTwisp, I can assure you I've never slain anything in my entire life."

"But you did," the white rabbit insisted. "Well…maybe not exactly you, but Alice defiantly did."

Alice was silent. After a minute or two of thinking, she leaned towards the white rabbit and asked slowly, "Being the Timekeeper, I bet you're very good with dates, aren't you?"

"Only one of the best, m' lady," said McTwisp proudly. "I know the exactly date and time of every trip I've taken to Upperland."

"And I'm assuming you brought me…Alice to Underland the first time, correct?" continued Alice.

"Indeed," said the rabbit with a nod.

"So McTwisp…what exactly was the date you brought me or Alice or whoever to Underland that time?"

"June 2nd, 1875," said the rabbit matter-of-factly, "At precisely 12:02 in the afternoon."

"And you know what date it was when you brought me here?"

"December 2rd…2010," said the rabbit, nervousness slowly seeping into his voice. He was starting to catch on to what Alice was trying to do. "At…12:02 in the morning."

"And I'm sure you know, McTwisp," said Alice, crossing her arms. "That although time doesn't exist here in Underland, which explains why everyone here hasn't grown old and died, that time has a much different affect on humans where I'm from."

"Ah, yes, I know that's very well," said the rabbit, lowering his ears a bit.

"Humans cannot live 135 years, McTwisp. Not where I'm from, anyway. So," said Alice curiously, narrowing her eyes, "What makes you think I can possibly be the same Alice you brought here the first time?"

The white rabbit was now a quivering ball of anxiety. Alice felt bad, so she reach out and gently petted the rabbit on the head until he was calm enough to speak. "I-I-I'm afraid that's the rather confusing part of it all. The White Queen –" Suddenly, McTwisp stopped shaking. He pulled out and looked at his pocket-watch, then yelped.

"Oh dear! Oh dear oh dear – we're terribly late!" Slamming the watch shut, he began to scurry away, pulling urgently on Alice's skirt after she had gotten on her feet.

"But McTwisp, I thought time didn't exist in Underland?' asked Alice as she struggled to keep up with the rabbit and not trip over him at the same time.

"My dear girl, what you do think I'm for?" yipped the rabbit. "Come, come, we've got a very important meeting with the White Queen!"

The two of them, along with the Bandersnatch, made it back to the White Castle in a short amount of time. Both the white rabbit and the Bandersnatch (who seemed awfully upset to see Alice go) left Alice at the main entrance of the Castle, where McTwisp instructed Alice to make her way to the throne room. Two guards escorted her, eventually reaching the room where the White Queen sat on her enormous marble throne. Seeing Alice walk through the door, she smiled her ever-happy smile.

"Very good," said Mirana, standing from her throne and motioning Alice to come forward. "I think we may have sorted out this whole the Alice or non-Alice mess."

Alice's spirit rose at those words. She had been hoping the Queen would be providing her a way home at this meeting, but an explanation for why she was here was the next best thing. "How?"

"It's the potion I made, remember? The Hidderlop Potion is an ancient and powerful thing, able to see into the spirit and heart of anyone who's willing to give a bit of themselves to it." The queen chuckled. "Thus, the Griffon's eye was a vital part of the potion. Understand? Seeing?" But Alice could find nothing funny about that gruesome memory of the eye and the potion. Thinking about it made her feel a little sick. Well, at least I didn't have to drink it, thought Alice with a grimace.

"I'm happy to say that my theory had been proven correct!" Mirana said whilst clasping her hands together in childish glee. "You see, no one really knew why you've come back, and as a different Alice, of all things; I mean, the Oraculum has yet to completely tell us why you've come, but-"

"Your Majesty, if you please," Alice cut her off. "What did the potion tell you?"

The Queen's smile dimmed a little. "Well, it's a bit complicated. You see, you are Alice – the Champion who saved us and slayed the Jabberwocky – but at the same time, you're not-Alice. Not the same Alice as before."

"What exactly are you saying, your Majesty?" asked Alice with confusion on her face and in voice.

"Exactly what I just said: the old-Alice is gone, but you are our new-Alice, come back with some of the old-Alice in you."

After a moment, Alice's face darkened, finally understanding Mirana's words. "Your Highness," she said tightly, "I do not believe in reincarnation. Nor do I believe in ghosts. And I certainly do not believe I am any of those things."

"It's neither of those things, my child," said the queen gingerly, probably noticing how much the prospect distressed the young woman. "You see, the Alice who came here the first time did indeed pass on after death. But a part of her refused to move on with the rest of her – the Underland part of her. Because she knew that she had to come back to Underland one day, and she couldn't do that if she was dead, now could she? And so, a new-Alice was born, and the old-Underland-Alice was reborn with her."

Alice was shocked into silence for a good couple of seconds. When she spoke again, her voice now trembling, she asked, "So…so there are two people living inside of me?"

"Oh no, not at all!" said Mirana, taken aback. "You are a one-and-the-same Alice. Old-Alice has always been a part of new-Alice. The old-Alice just has yet to be unlocked. That's why you cannot remember anything."

"I'm very sorry your Highness," said Alice, trying her best to look diplomatic and not as shaken by the news as she really was, "But that just sounds really far-fetched."

The White Queen frowned in confusion. "'Far-fetched?'"

"Impossible."

The queen smiled again. "Oh, my dear child. Nothing is impossible. Things are only impossible if people believe they are. Anything is possible if we believe."

"Oh, that's it then?" snapped Alice, more rudely then she had intended. "Faith, trust and pixie dust, and all that crap?"

"Alice, whatever are you talking about?"

She took a deep breath. "Okay…let's say I believe this old-Alice and new-Alice business. Why would old-Alice, as you call her, need to stay alive? Didn't she do her business with the Jabber-whatever and save Underland already?"

"That is what we have yet to find out. But it's more than a why, I suspect. It's a who." For the first time, Alice could see a hint of sadness in Mirana's eyes. "A who that you promised to return to, and never did."

For some reason that stopped Alice's anger in its tracks. She remembered hearing the people (and animals) speaking about someone she had supposedly "abandoned" last night. She had no idea who they were talking about, and still didn't know, but her heart felt heavy at the thought anyway. But how could she help it if she didn't know who she left behind?

"How am I supposed to remember?" asked Alice in a more subdued voice. "How do I unlock the old-Alice, like you said?"

The White Queen frowned, and for the first time Alice had seen since arriving, dropped her statuesque arms and crossed them over her chest.

"I was hoping you would get here and the rest would sort itself out."

So like a monarch, Alice couldn't help but think sardonically.

"I suspect that you need to reacquaint yourself with this world. Has nothing struck you as oddly familiar since you came here?" asked Mirana thoughtfully.

Surprisingly, she had. Alice didn't think it important before, but now that Mirana mentioned it, it started to make a little sense. "Yes, but only very faint familiarities. Never a sharp image to accompany it, or an exact memory of me anywhere he-."

A small and nervous cough interrupted her. McTwisp was peeking his tiny white head through the door. "U-um, F-forgive me your M-Majesty…"

The White Queen motioned for the white rabbit to come in. He hopped across the white room to the throne, and Alice noticed that he was shaking even harder then she had seen the frantic march hare quivering the night before.

"Oh my," said the queen with concern. "What is it Nivens?"

"D-don't let me f-fool you, it's nothing urgent," stuttered McTwisp, his ears lowered, toying with the pocket-watch in his paws, rolling it back and forth repeatedly, not looking into the White Queen's eyes. Poor McTwisp, thought Alice sympathetically, He really does get overly-anxious about everything.

But Mirana obviously saw something more serious in the rabbit's twitching. She was no longer smiling, and her entire body no longer floated like a feather; her arms dropped to her sides, some invisible force weighing her down. "McTwisp," Mirana said in the most serious tone Alice had ever heard the queen use, "What's wrong?"

"It's just…" the rabbit stopped playing with his watch and stared into Alice's eyes. There was something he was trying to say in that look, something important - but Alice couldn't comprehend it. He then turned his full attention back to the White Queen to tell the news.

"Hatter has returned."