A/N: Took me a few days to type this up… I'm still thinking about ideas for my other stories, so maybe tomorrow I'll update TOaO, but no promises ^^"
Rafanan: Welcome ^^
Himitsu the secretive otaku: Thank you so much :3
Sleeping Moon: Thanks ^^ Okay, I'll check it out :D
Austriantatious: Yeah! Writing that was funny! Thanks ^^
Hikari © me
Any KH's characters or places mentioned © Square Enix
Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice © QuinRose
3=~x~X~x~=E
Mission 4
Let the Game Begin
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"'The Circus has arrived'?" Hikari repeated as she raised an eyebrow. Nightmare smirked before he began to cough once more. "I don't get it… I thought the Circus is already here at the first place…" She stated bluntly.
Nightmare let out a small chuckle. "No dear, that's not what I meant." He wiped the blood off his chin. "What I meant to say was… The Joker has invited us to come to his Circus." He corrected.
"Oh… I—I know that! I was just checking! Yeah, checking! That's all!" Hikari shouted as she turned away from the dream demon with a pout. She heard Nightmare chuckled. A smile curled up to her lips before turning into a confused frown. She just remembered. She doesn't even know who this Joker is. She turned back to face the sick dream demon. "Who's Joker anyway? Wait, wait, wait! Don't tell me! I wanna find out on my own!" She answered herself, laughing like a hyena.
"How old are you anyway? Seventeen or seven?" Nightmare asked with a hint of amusement in his voice.
"Heh! All I can tell you that I'm in my teen years!" Hikari grinned as she gave him a thumb up.
Nightmare gave a small smile as he patted Hikari head lightly. All she did was grin and before she could even start up another conversation, the room was filled with Nightmare's coughing and hacking. A frown came to the brunette's lips. He was coughing blood. It wasn't normal. He was really ill. It was hurtful to watch. The brunette shook her head. Whenever her friends are either sick or injured, they weren't the only ones who are hurt. She was too. Her heart aches to see her friends are suffering while she isn't.
Life is so unfair sometimes…
Hikari turned her chair around to face the window. She leaned back against her chair, making it stand on two of its feet, while she crossed her hands behind her head. Her bright blue eyes were staring into nothingness, drifting into her daily daydream. She needs to be carefully around this sick dream demon. He can read her thoughts and invade her dreams. The keyblade wielder tried her best not to think of her past life from when she was only thirteen till now. She doesn't want her new friend to know about how dangerous it is out there. He was too sick to know.
"Hikari~!" A voice shouted cheerfully as the door slammed open. Startled, Hikari lost her balance and fall backwards to the floor, her head hitting the red carpeted floor with a loud thud. She whines in pain as she rubbed the spot where her head hit the floor. She glanced up to see the Knight of Hearts with that idiotic smile on his face. She glared at him with a scowl. "Awww~ Did I startle you?" The voice asked as he crouched down.
Hikari's eyes widened in surprised. Her reputation would be ruined! "NO! Of course not! I just lost my balance! That's all!" She defended, trying to convince Ace that she only lost her balance.
"Oh really?" Ace asked as he ruffled Hikari's short cut brown hair. "Looks like you were startled by me~! It's a shame that I can't see that startled face of yours." He pouted.
Hikari glared at the Knight. "You wanna see it? Huh? Wanna see it?! Then here!" She made the face when she was startled. Ace and Nightmare blinked a few times before Ace burst into full laughter and Nightmare chuckles. Hikari was making a weird face. Her eyes were wide and her mouth hung open in surprise. "There! You've seen it! Happy now Ace?! Now the back of my poor head hurts!" She whines and shook her fist in anger.
Ace laughed once more before he turned the smaller brunette around. He rested a large gloved hand on her left shoulder as his right hand held her fist tightly. He leans down to the smaller figure. A smirk appeared on his lips as Hikari was yelling something about personal space. He didn't saw her face getting red from the sudden encounter, but he did saw the look in her fiery blue eyes. His smirk would widen if it could. He blow air into her left ear and she shuddered. Narrowing his red eyes, he saw Nightmare got a nosebleed. A dark chuckle escapes Ace's throat as he kisses the back of Hikari's head.
"What did you just do?" Hikari asked curiously with an eyebrow raised as she narrowed her eyes to the Knight behind her.
Ace smirked. "I kissed your boo-boo~!" he sung happily.
Hikari instantly paled. "EEEEWWWWW! COOTIES! Evil little cooties in my hair! Evil little cooties in my HAIR!" She screamed loudly and slipped out of Ace's grasps easily. The brunette began to run around Nightmare's room as she avoided all of the furniture. Ace and Nightmare stares blankly at the screaming girl in the room. She finally trips, landing face first on the carpeted floor. She muffled something into the carpet.
Ace tilted his head to the side. He leaned down, cupping his ear. "What was that? We didn't quite hear you, Hikari." He asked. Hikari muffled something into the carpet again. "You really need to stop talking to the floor Hikari… literally." He said with a smile.
Hikari lifted her head up slightly. "I said 'You idiot! You've just contaminated me with your stupid cooties! Don't you know that cooties are dangerous?!' that's what I kept saying!" she smacked the back of Ace's head.
"Awwwweeeee!" Ace whines as he rubbed the spot where Hikari has hit him. "But you let Pierce kiss your cheek! No fair!" He huffed childishly.
"That's because Pierce is still a—WAIT! How did you know?!" Hikari demanded with a confused, yet shocked look.
Ace grinned, "Hehehe~ I have my ways!" he whistled a tune.
Hikari gave a look to the Knight. "Okay…. As I was saying, that's because Pierce is still a kid!" She crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at the Knight. After a few seconds of silence, Ace and Nightmare laughed, making the keyblade wielder raised her eyebrow confusedly. "What? What's so funny?! Ace?! Nightmare?! Aw! C'mon dudes! Tell me!" She shook Ace back and forth by the collar of his shirt.
"Hikari, Pierce is two years older than you." Nightmare stated with a chuckle. He wiped his tears of laughter away, smiling at the brunettes. His eye saw the dumbfound look on Hikari's face. He sweat dropped. "He's uh… nineteen years old." he tried to say.
"WHAT?! I thought he was still a kid with that face! He's too adorable to be a teenager!" Hikari complained, standing up to her feet and she offered a helping hand to Ace. She looked at the brown haired man with a look. She was beginning to doubt everyone's age. What if Ace is a little kid in a tall man's body? Or what if Ace is an old man in a tall man's body?! She blinked the thoughts away as Nightmare chuckles. "How old exactly are you Ace? No offence for asking about your real age, but I'm beginning to doubt everyone's age here." she sighed.
"Awww… You're interested in me?! I'm so happy!" Ace cheered happily as he embraced the small brunette in his arms, crushing her with a hug. "And as for your question… I'm exactly twenty two, five months, two weeks, eleven hours, twenty minutes, and four… five… six—," he was cut off by a hand on his mouth.
"We get it!" Hikari cuts in, smiling nervously.
Ace smiled and removed Hikari's hand from his mouth. "—years old," he finishes. He sniffed Hikari's palm and smiled creepily, his eyes turning to a darker shade of red. "Your hand smells like blood…" he trailed off.
Nightmare paled and Hikari notices the color draining out of his face. "Well, I was wiping blood off of Nightmare's hands and mouth." She quickly snatched her hand back from Ace with a straight look. "So yeah, my hand does smells a bit like blood. Same goes for my jacket too…" she exhaled a deep breath, scratching the back of her head.
"Jacket?" Ace repeated.
"Yeah, jacket." Hikari pointed to her blue sleeveless jacket in the corner of the room. "My poor, poor, poor jacket was covered in blood. So I had to take it off." She gave another sigh. "But luckily~ my turtle neck and neckerchief are unharmed! Yay!" She cheered happily.
Ace chuckles, "Why…. Nightmare~ I didn't know you—,"
"ACE!" Nightmare hissed with a hint of red on his cheeks. He quickly grabbed Ace's collar, pulling the Knight closer. The sickly dream demon's blushing face was a few inches away from Ace's calm and smiling face. "She's too dense to even realize anything, you idiotic Knight! I would like to keep that denseness! It's too adorable!" he hissed out, releasing Ace's collar,
Ace merely laughed as he fixes his shirt. "Okie-dokie~! I like it too~!" He said as he walked towards the door, waving his arm goodbye. He stopped right at the door. He slightly looked over his shoulder. A glint of mischief in his eyes and a smirk played on his lips. "It's very amusing~!" he sung before leaving.
Hikari stared at the Knight. "What the heck just happened? What's amusing? Is he talking about the Circus?! Is he?! Tell me! Tell me! Tell me! No wait! Don't tell me!" She jumped on Nightmare's bed a few times, before sitting down at the edge of the bed.
Nightmare let out a full-hearted laugh, placing a hand on Hikari's shoulder. "You changed your mood so fast. One minute you were complaining about cooties, and the next about Pierce's age, and then about this." he smiled.
Hikari's smile fell at the reminder of cooties. "COOTIES!" She screamed, jumping out from the bed as she began to run around the room once more.
She tripped yet again.
Nightmare shook his head as there was a knock on his door.
"Lord Nightmare, lunch is ready." Gray knocks on the door before stepping in the room. His eyebrows were raised confusedly as he stared at the two people inside. Nightmare was in bed with Hikari on the floor, laying on her front. The former assassin sighed deeply before shaking his head. "What is going on here?" he asked with a calm tone.
Alice peeks out from behind Gray and stared with her big gray-ish blue eyes. "Uh… What are you doing on the floor Hikari? You know… if you're tired, you can always use one of the room here." she giggled, helping the brunette up.
"Thanks Alice, but I'm not tired." Hikari replied, rubbing her nose as is throbs. Her nose was changing color, from tan-ish to reddish. She almost looked like that reindeer. The brunette glanced around and leans forward while covering her mouth from view. "I'm trying to get rid of the cooties!" she whispered out.
"Cooties?' Alice whispered back, confused.
"Yeah, cooties!" Hikari repeated.
Alice shook her head, "Hikari, there's no such thing as cooties." She smiled.
"Oh yeah?" Hikari pouted and showed the big lump on the back of her head. "Then why is there a big lump on the back of my head, precisely the place where Ace kissed it?! It's one of the side effects of the cooties!" She cried silently in the corner of the room.
A visible vein popped on Alice's forehead. 'That stupid Knight…' She grumbles in her mind before smiling at Hikari, who was still crying. "It's okay Hikari. Cooties don't exist, trust me. Ace was just joking around." she nervously laughed.
Alice spotted Hikari's sleeveless blue jacket in the corner of the room, covered with smudged with crimson liquid. "How about we go shopping for clothes? I see that your old jacket is covered in blood." She suggested.
"Shopping? There are stores here?" Hikari asked, crawling away from her little corner. Even though she hated shopping, she needs a new jacket to wear. Wearing her turtleneck and her neckerchief was fine, but she has a thing with jackets. She always liked the hood part of every jacket. It covers her face and hair when needed to and it also gives her the 'mysterious' look. "I'm not much a fan of shopping for clothes… I'm much more of a food, weapon, and gag toys kind of girl…" she sheepishly admitted.
Alice giggled, "Oh I'm sure you'll love it! Come on!" she grabbed Hikari's hand and dragged her out.
"H-Hold on Alice! I didn't even have lunch yet!" Hikari cried, her voice echoing through the long halls.
Nightmare and Gray stared as the two foreigners left the room. Gray notices something on the floor, a small bottle—not bigger than his palm—with a very suspicious liquid inside. It was more suspicious than the Medicine of Hearts. The former assassin grabbed the small bottle and examined it with his sharp golden eyes. He turned the bottle around and saw some writing on the glass bottle in small black words.
"Lord Nightmare," Gray began, turning to his Lord with a straight expression. The sick dream demon lifted his head up to his assistant. He showed Nightmare the little bottle. "Do you know who owns this item? I find it too suspicious to be the Medicine of Hearts that belongs to that girl, Hikari." he said, handing the bottle.
Nightmare raised an eyebrow. He never saw any Medicine of Hearts in a small bottle with multiple glowing liquids inside before. He turned the bottle around and found the same writing Gray found a minute before. He carefully read the small words.
—To Nightmare~
Drink this! Trust me! It'll make you feel better!—
'Strange… when did Hikari wrote this?' Nightmare thought confusedly.
3=~x~X~x~=E
"Can we at least eat something?" Hikari breathed out, her shoulders slump down as low as she can while trying not to drop any shopping bags. She insisted to carry every shopping bag, but Alice didn't want to burden the brunette. So Alice also carries a few bags. "I'm still starving, Alice…" The brunette groaned out, sounding miserable as she dragged her feet to keep up with Alice's pace.
It's been a few hours since Alice dragged Hikari into the town. The chestnut-haired girl dragged Hikari in and out of every clothes story, literally. The stubborn brunette clings on a nearby pole and refuses to enter any clothes store while she was looking at the food stands. Eventually, Alice managed to drag and make Hikari try on the clothes she picked out. Sadly, Hikari only liked the jackets and what's worse is that the jackets she liked were at the men's department! It was hard trying to convinced her to buy more girly outfits, but Alice did bought her some skirts and some other non-too-girly clothing. Hikari has to wear them, whether she liked it or not.
"Ugh… hold on there, girl…" Hikari patted her growling stomach as she sighed heavily. "Food can't be far away!" she groaned, trying to convince Alice that she was dying from hunger with her horrible acting.
Alice smiled before jogging towards a nearby food stand. Hikari never did notice the disappearance of the chestnut haired girl because she was too busy daydreaming about lunch. She hasn't eaten anything but breads, cookies, drink canned drinks and drink tea for the past two time periods. The brunette groaned loudly as her stomach growls.
"Hey Alice—," Hikari was suddenly silenced by something being shoved into her mouth. "Wha? Awice! Wha is twis?!" She demanded, panic in her tone.
"It's a hot dog." Alice said, smiling.
"It's a dog?" Hikari almost spit the food out of her mouth, but she can't actually do that when there's a little Faceless girl in front of her. Hikari scanned the area with eyes of a killer. Whoever claims the idea of hot dogs is going to get his or her butt kicked! She heard a man yelling out the words. She pun around and found a Faceless man with colorful clothing. The brunette was really going to throw the stand owner across the country if Alice wasn't holding her by her arm. "Alice! Let go! I'm going to teach that man a lesson!" the angered brunette hissed out.
Alice struggled to keep Hikari away from the hot dog seller. "Hikari! Don't! He's innocent!" She yelled, trying to stay in place. Hikari was slowly dragging her, wearing her heels out on the concreted path as a small dust cloud could be seen from her the heel of her red shoes. "He's not actually selling hot dogs! It's just what we call it! It's not actual dogs!" She shouted.
Hikari stopped on her tracks. Her murderous look was turned into a confused look. "What? So what you're saying is that these are not dogs?" She tilted her head as she observed the food in her hand.
Alice took a deep breath of relief before answering, "Yeah, trust me. I would do the same as you if it were dogs." She inhaled a deep breath. The chestnut-haired girl observed the confused young brunette in front of her as she sniffs the hot dog to make sure it doesn't reek of smell. A giggle escaped her lips at how innocent and clueless Hikari is. She hates to admit it, but she doesn't want Hikari to leave Wonderland just yet. It was a selfish thought, then again… Hikari did say that she didn't want to leave just yet.
"Hurry up and eat it! It's not poisoned!" Alice said. She saw that Hikari seemed to hesitate for a moment before taking a bite. The brunette's eyes widened and her shoulders began to shake. Alice's shoulders cringed before patting Hikari's back a few times. "Hikari! What's wrong?! Is it really poisoned?! Are you okay?!" Alice asked worriedly.
"T-This… Hot dog…" Hikari managed to squeak out as she crouched down.
"Y-Yeah?" Alice say, frantically looking for a doctor around.
"IS DELICIOUS!" Hikari exclaimed happily, pumping her fist up in the air.
Alice blinked a few times. "Huh?"
Hikari grinned at Alice, "This hot dog is delicious! I've never taste anything like it! The favor of this hot dog is unique!" she exclaimed, taking another bite of her hot dog happily.
Alice took a deep sigh of relief, pacing a hand over her chest. The childish brunette almost gave her a heart attack! She never knew someone would reach so dramatically after eating their first hot dog. Hikari was the first one to react like that, as if she almost had a real heart attack. A visible vein popped on Alice's forehead as her fist shook in anger.
"Hey Alice~OW!" Hikari sang with a mouthful of her hot dog, but was quickly cut off when something hit the top of her head. She rubbed the spot while crying out in pain. Blue eyes with tears of pain stared up at the chestnut-haired girl in front of her. "What was that for?! I didn't do anything wrong!" Hikari whined.
"That's for almost giving me a heart attack! I was worried that you might be really poisoned or something!" Alice scolded, with her hands on her hips.
Hikari blinked and grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of her neck. "Hehehe… Sorry Alice, I didn't know my overreaction would make you so shocked." She apologized.
Alice sighed, "I'm sorry too… for hitting you." She said, helping Hikari up to her feet.
"No biggie~!" Hikari said quickly before munching down her whole hot dog.
Alice giggled before finishing up with her hot dog as well. "We better head back to the Clover Tower, Julius and the others might be worried." She said as she handed Hikari a drink, which she happily took. "It looks like it's almost night time and it's dangerous to be lurking in the night…"
"Dangerous? Why?" Hikari asked as she and Alice began to walk towards the direction of the Clover Tower, with Alice leading of course.
"There are wild animals lurking around and faceless who wants us, foreigners, dead." Alice explained as she rubbed her arms, trying to keep warm.
Hikari nodded her head and moved all of the shopping bags into one hand. She was trying to take off her brand new jacket with only using one hand. It was a long sleeved white jacket with two black stripes at the sleeve and of course, it also has a hood. Carefully, Hikari placed her white jacket around Alice's shivering body.
"What are you doing?" Alice question as she raised an eyebrow.
Hikari smiled warmly. "Helping you of course~!" She sang as she took the bags away from Alice's hands.
"Yo—You don't have to! Those are heavy!" Alice complained, trying to take back her bags.
"Psssh! This is like carrying those Bloody Brats! Light as a feather! Don't worry about me Alice, I'm fine~!" Hikari grinned happily.
Alice didn't look convinced. "Aren't you cold?" she asked, gripping on the jacket around her shoulder.
Hikari shook her head, the smile never leaving her lips. "Nope, I'm used to the cold… My home town can be really cold sometimes." She replied, shifting the bags in her hand to a better position. "Besides, I still have my neckerchief and my arm covers~" she laughed happily.
Alice shook her head with a small smile. "Thank you," She said in a clear tone. A sheepish grin made its way to Hikari's lips, a tint of red brushed across her cheeks. The chestnut-haired girl couldn't help but giggle. Hikari was so childish and clueless, but she can also be caring to a friend. She's nothing like her friends back at England. They only befriend her because of her father's wealth. Hikari was defiantly nothing like her so called friends. "Even though we just met a couple of time periods ago… you're very kind to me, Hikari." Alice smiled.
"Well yeah! We're friends, right?" Hikari asked, looking at Alice with her signature grin. "Friends help each other!" she continued, trying to pump her fist up in the air.
"Yeah, we're defiantly friends." Alice laughed, wrapping the jacket closer to her body. Her gray-ish blue eyes saw Hikari grinning goofily, but that's not all she saw. A large shadow towered over behind the brunette, holding a weapon. Her eyes widened in shock and her mouth hung open, trying to speak out and warn the brunette on what's coming. "Hikari! Behind you!" she screamed.
Hikari quickly turned around. Her blue eyes widened as a large figure was behind her, holding some kind of weapon pointed at her head. She didn't have time to block the man's attack. The man had already hit her head, hard. The keyblade wielder falls to her knees, dropping every bag she has in her hands before laying completely at the ground. She felt something warm tickling down her face as her vision blurred. To her surprise, she never lets her guard down when there's someone planning to ambush. Perhaps she was just used to the Heartless ambushing her. She didn't train hard enough if humans were the one ambushing her.
"One down, one left." The Faceless muttered with a sinister smirk on his lips.
Alice took a few steps back, her eyes widened in pure horror. The Faceless just took Hikari down with a single hard whack on the head. The hit even echoes through to where she was standing. The red liquid staining Hikari's face made Alice shuddered. Hikari could be seriously injured and she might even be…dead. Alice shook the negative thoughts away. Her gray-ish blue eyes stare right to the group of rebels in front of her. All of them were fully equipped with weapons, starting from pocket knives to rifles. Most importantly, they all had sinister smirks.
Alice gulped. Where was Ace when you need him!
"This should be easy," The other Faceless said as he pulled the hammer of his gun.
"P-Please… St-Stop!" Alice begged as tears filled her eyes.
The leader of the rebels laughed. "Why should we when we're so close to killing the precious foreigner that belongs to the Joker?" he asked.
"I –I don't belong to anyone!" Alice shouted as her hands were balled up into tight fists, trying to scare the rebels away. Instead of running away, the rebels laughed. One of the rebels grabbed Alice's wrist and held them back tightly. The chestnut haired girl struggled to get out of his grip, but he was just too strong! "Let go of me, you ruffian!" She felt tear streaming down her pale cheeks.
"Awww… She's struggling! She's a lot feistier than the dead one." The man referred to an unconscious brunette.
"NO! She's not dead! Hikari! Wake up! Run! Hurry!" Alice cried loudly, struggling even more to get out of the Faceless' grasp.
"It's useless, lady." The man behind her said. "She's dead now." he chuckled darkly.
Alice turned her face away as she closed her eyes tightly. She refuses to belive that Hikari's dead, but she also didn't want to see her lying lifelessly on the ground.
"A…Alice…" A hoarse voice called up to Alice weakly. Alice instantly perked her head up to the source. It was Hikari's voice! She sounded so weak… so vulnerable. Alice's gray-ish blue eyes watch as Hikari slowly lifted herself up to her feet with blood dripping from her forehead. The brunette stumbled a few times, but managed to keep standing. Her blue eyes weren't the normal bright and cheerful blue eyes, it was different now. It was now a dark shade of blue, a murderous look could be seen in her eyes. Alice gulped, this wasn't the Hikari she knew.
"Al-Alice… Close your eyes and… wait until I told you to open them, okay?" Hikari asked with a small, forced smile.
Alice could only nod as he closed her eyes tightly, hoping that this will all be over when any Role-Holder came into the rescue. Heck she didn't mind Peter popping out of nowhere now! All that she cares is Hikari's and her own safety.
Hikari closed her eyes as she cracked her knuckles. She was far beyond pissed. She was super pissed. A man just jumped at her and hit her right at the head! It hurts like Oblivion! But she wasn't just mad because the man hit her, no, she was also mad because they wanted to kill Alice as well! Nobody and she means nobody, threatened her friends. A dark look was seen on her face as she stared up to the rebel's boss. Her eyebrows furrowed down as her lips twitched in a scowl.
"You guys… really did pissed me off…" Hikari said darkly, scowling at the rebels. She saw the Faceless rebels flinched at the sudden change. A grin made its way to her lips as he eyes glinted with mischief. "Awww… Did I really scare you?" she teased.
"Shut up, you b****! I thought I killed you already!" The rebels' boss shouted, pointing a gun straight at Hikari's head.
"Killed me? With what? A hit on the head? Pffft! You make me laugh!" Hikari clutched her sides, laughing. She wiped the tears away from her eyes, creating a smug of red on her face.
"It'll take more than that to kill me, fellas." Hikari grinned as she stood in a fighting stance. "How about we settle this once and for all? I'll be happy to send you guys back to where you truly belongs." She smiled sweetly at them.
Alice was worried sick about Hikari. The chestnut-haired girl kept her eyes closed the whole time. She flinches whenever she heard any punches, kicks, gunshots, and screams of pain. The Faceless holding her was keeping a tight grip around her wrists. It was beginning to ache and she could feel the throbbing pain. She heard Hikari argued a lot with the rebels, throwing some insults and laughs.
"Gah!" The man behind her shouted loudly as the grip around her wrist was loosened. A loud thud was heard soon after the scream.
Alice let out a sigh of relief as she slides down to the ground. Her legs were like jelly, she couldn't handle the sounds of screams any longer. Suddenly, she felt another pair of strong arms wrap around her shoulder. She cringed, but soon relaxed a little as the arms were holding her protectively. It wasn't the same grip as the man who was holding her hostage. It was different. There's no mistake that the person must be Hikari.
"Alice… Are you okay?" Hikari asked quietly, lightly gripping her hands on Alice's trembling shoulder. "You can open your eyes now, Alice… There's nothing to be afraid of, I'll be here to protect you from those buttheads." She reassured with a small smile.
Alice slowly opened her eyes. "Hi—Hikari…" She whispered and felt something warm dripped to her cheek. It was blood, Hikari's blood. The chestnut-haired girl stared in horror as the blood from the wound on her head kept on bleeding. "Yo—Your face is covered in blood! We need to get out of here! Now!" She half yelled, gripping on the jacket around her shoulders.
Hikari nodded her head, turning slightly to face the fully armed rebels. "Right. I'll distract them and when I shout 'run', you'll run as fast as you can to the Clover Tower, okay?" she whispered out the plan as quietly as she can.
Alice's eyes widened. "W-What?! I'm not leaving you behind with these guys!" She argued.
"Yes you are. I'll be fine, Alice. Don't worry about me. You can get help once you returned to Clover Tower." Hikari said, shaking her head as she stood up. "And besides… My friends taught me a lot in self defense and other things that I have to know. Now stand back… things are going to get pretty ugly." She cracked her knuckles and stood in a fighting stance.
Alice nodded. "Al—Alright, please be careful…" she whispered.
Hikari smiled, taking that as a 'good luck' line. "You got it."
"Are you ready to give up, you pesky little brat?" The rebels' boss asked, the smug smirk never leaving his face.
Hikari's eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "I don't even know the term 'give up', you butthead!" She cursed as she waved her fist angrily at the rebels. She charged at them, punching and kicking every rebels there is, like there's no tomorrow.
A few minutes passed by and Hikari was already covered in sweat, blood, bruises, and cuts. It stings, but she just has to bear with it until she reached Clover Tower. She could use her keyblade, magic, and other magical things, but Alice would have heard her shouting over those magic words. She didn't want to risk anyone here at the new Wonderland know that she's actually a keyblade wielder.
Alice watched from behind a large tree trunk. Her whole body was trembling from head to toe. It was like a war zone out there. Hikari was defenseless. She was weaponless against those groups of rebels. If it wasn't for her combat skills, she couldn't even survive a second out there.
She watched as Hikari charged at the rebels' boss. She avoided most of the bullet that was headed towards her, but most of the bullets scratched her skin. She jumped after she was right in front of the boss. The keyblade wielder landed behind the rebels' boss, leg sweeping him to the ground. She did a back-flip as one of his goons was trying to punch her. She blocked the punch and threw him over her shoulder. The other men were trying to harm her as well, not stopping for a few seconds. Every time and even when she was fighting a goon, another show up with a weapon in hand.
Alice flinched and closed her eyes tightly as Hikari was thrown to the ground roughly.
"—lice! ALICE!" Quickly, said girl snapped out of her thoughts. Alice saw that the brunette was wrestling a rebel on the ground with all her might. The rebel struggled to get away, trashing every time he has the chance. He landed a punch to Hikari's jaw and she rolled away from the rebel. A gun was pointed straight at Alice, but suddenly Hikari put the rebel in a headlock from behind, making him miss his shot. "Quick! Get out of here! Now! Run as fast you can and never look back!" Hikari commanded.
Alice nodded hesitantly before sprinting as fast as she can towards the Clover Tower. She tightly grips the jacket around her shoulder. She closed her eyes as tears were at the corner of her eyes, at the verge of crying like a waterfall. Gunshots and screams didn't help her at all. It was making her feel worse. Tears were now staining her cheeks.
'Don't worry Hikari, I'll come back with help!'
3=~x~X~x~=E
"Peter, I told you before, Alice and Hikari aren't here." Julius let out a deep sigh as he stopped for a brief moment from fixing the clocks. The long haired man has been bothered by the Prime Minister for the pass hour. He kept on demanding the exact location of where Alice and Hikari were. The Mortician kept on saying that he doesn't know, but the Prime Minister refuses to believe him. Ace, Gray and Nightmare weren't much of a help either. Those three were busy sitting down and having tea instead of helping him. "Peter, for the last time, I do not know. Now please leave before I use force." He said, motioning his screw in hand to the door.
"But, but, but… my poor little kitten left the Medicine of Hearts! I came to return this to her~!" Peter lifted the Medicine of Heart high above his head as he has hearts all over him. "Tell me, Mortician! Where are you hiding my precious foreigners?!" he demanded, his pocket watch transformed into a gun.
Julius rubbed his temples. "Get. Out." He hissed between clenched teeth.
"I'm not leaving until I see my dear kitten and my dear ex!" Peter exclaimed, pointing his gun at Julius' head.
"Ah~ this is going to be interesting~" Ace sang happily as he leaned back against the couch, cross-legged.
Julius glared at the brown haired knight before turning to Peter again. "I. said. Get. Out—,"
"JULIUS!" Alice's voice was heard as the door slammed opened.
Julius and the other Role-Holders in the room turn their heads towards the door. The Mortician's midnight blue eyes widened in surprise as he saw Alice's appearance. The chestnut-haired girl's hair was a bit messy, there were signs of her wrists being held so tightly that purple marks appear, her white apron and her blue dress has blood smudged all over, and her eyes shows fear. The other thing that was off about her was the white jacket around her shoulder.
The Mortician quickly stood up from his seat, his eyes darkening.
This must be the work of that girl, Hikari… Julius thought darkly.
"Alice! What happened?!" Gray immediately rushed to her side, checking for her injuries.
"My dear ex! Who did this to you?!" Peter demanded, he also rushed to Alice's other side.
"No time!" Alice grabbed Gray's hand, trying to drag him out of the room. "Gray! You need to help Hikari! She's in trouble!"
Gray pulled back his hand. "Alice, calm down and tell us what really happened." He placed both of his hands on Alice's shoulders, trying to calm the young woman down. The young woman didn't calm down. Instead, she kept threw herself into Gray's chest, crying. The former assassin patted her head gently, trying to soothe her. "Alice… Calm down. No one is going to hurt you here… Now tell us what happened." He said.
"Hi-Hikari… sh-she—," Alice began but was cut off by Julius.
"I knew that girl was trouble," Julius spat, gripping on his wrench. "She was the one who hurt you, am I correct?" he asked with a murderous look.
Peter pointed his gun at Julius' head. "Mortician! Don't you dare accuse my precious kitten! My little kitten would never do that to my dear ex!" He shouted loudly.
"W-Wait—," Alice tried, but was cut off once more.
"Where is she now?" Gray asked, his knife was drawn out from its holster.
"No! P-Please! Listen to me!" Alice grabbed Gray's hand and pushed the knife down, trying to make him withdraw his knife away. "Hikari didn't do this to me, this is her blood! We need to help her now! She's fighting off a group of rebels on her own!" She quickly exclaimed with a frantic look.
The first Role-Holder who snapped out of his thoughts was the Prime Minister of Hearts. Soon after, everyone followed in pursuit, all except Nightmare and Julius. No matter how tempted the sick dream demon wants to help the new foreigner, he was too weak outside the tower. Julius on the other hand, didn't have any reason to help the new foreigner out. She has Gray, Peter, and Ace to help her out. So she doesn't need another Role-Holder to help her out, right?
"You know, Hikari is not that bad…" Nightmare began, sipping his warm tea. The Mortician turned his head towards the sick dream demon with a frown. "She's a really nice girl once you get to know her, Julius." The dream demon continued.
Julius turned away, going back to his desk. "I have nothing to do with that foreigner."He said bluntly, placing his glasses back. The long-haired man began to work on another clock. The steady beating of the grandfather clock's ticking filled the room. The Mortician really didn't want to involve himself to the new foreigner. She hasn't drunk the Medicine of Hearts and she's so childish. She was way different than Alice's personality. "For all I know, she could be the one who hurt Alice… she was too afraid to tell us because maybe that girl threatened her." He concluded bitterly.
Nightmare let out a small chuckle. "Who knows, Julius… you might be right." he said, taking another sip from his cup. "But unfortunately, you're wrong. Hikari didn't hurt Alice at all. The blood you see staining Alice's clothes were her blood and the jacket is also hers. She gave it to Alice to keep her warm from the strong cold evening wind." He said, his eye staring straight to the Mortician.
Julius let out a heavy sigh.
3=~x~X~x~=E
"This isn't over you brat!" The rebels' boss shouted as he and his goons retreated.
"Hah! Tell it to my fist, you dumb-butt!" Hikari raised her fist up, cussing.
After Alice ran towards the Clover Tower, Hikari used the chance to summon her keyblade. The rebels' eyes were as wide as plates when they saw her summoning a giant key-sword-like to hand. Quickly, she used every method she knew from her friends to knock some senses to the rebels' puny minds. She gave a good whack to their heads, knocking them out cold. Finally, after scaring them with her keyblade, they retreated rather quickly. It was like they were running away from a monster or something, but they were running away from a seventeen year old girl who's already experience in combat since she was little.
"Aweee," Hikari flinched as the cuts on her whole body began to sting. There weren't any fatal wounds, but they still need to be treated properly. She wanted to use magic to heal her wounds or even use the potion, but she can't actually do that. Alice would suspect something was off. Hikari was covered in cuts and bruises, but after Alice left her for ten minutes, she was as good as new! No cuts or anything, but only blood covering her skin. Now the keyblade wielder can't have that. "Sure wish I can use magic to heal these up…" She sighed heavily.
"Darn… they ruined my clothes…" Hikari muttered as she kicks a nearby pebble, flinching as she moved her leg.
"Hikari!" The brunette heard her name being called multiple times. She turned around and saw Alice running towards her with a frantic look. "Oh my goodness! You're bleeding all over!" The young woman cried loudly.
"Ahahaha, well… you see… The rebels did damage me a little…" Hikari sheepishly said, rubbing the back of her head.
"Little? They've beaten you up mercilessly!" Alice shouted, placing her hands on her hips. "Where are they now?" she asked.
"It's okay Alice… Don't worry… I kind of scared them away…" Hikari breathed out, feeling a bit woozy.
Alice franticly looked around for the Role-Holders. "Hang on okay? Gray! Ace! Peter! Where are you?! I need your help!" she shouted into the forest.
"I'm coming my sweet foreigners~!" Peter White's voice echoed throughout the forest around them. The Prime Minister of Hearts jumped out from the bush, avoiding the leaves and twigs. His crimson eyes widened underneath his round glasses. "My sweet! What happened to you?! Who did this to you?!" he demanded.
Gray and Ace came out a few seconds after Peter did. They both were as shock as Peter was.
The new foreigner was covered in her own blood! From her head to her legs, they were full of bruises and cuts. The small brunette was grinning reassuringly at everyone, trying to convince them that she was fine. Even with that grin, they knew that she was faking to be fine. They could see the pain in her expression as her eyebrow twitched and sweat was strolling down her face like a waterfall. The wound on her head wasn't helping either, it was still dripping blood.
"Ah~ I'm fine! See? I can still—," Hikari showed that she could walk, but after a few steps, she flinched and began to stumble back and forth. "—walk. No need to worry about me dudes and dudette!" she laughed.
Alice's fists shook with anger boiling inside of her.
Slap
"A…Alice?" Hikari began, blinking confusedly as she held her left cheek.
How could Hikari say she was fine when she was obviously hurt?!
"Alice…" Peter whispered as he, Gray, and Ace stared at the little scene.
Alice sniffled as she stared up at Hikari with watery eyes, making the brunette flinch.
"Wh-What's wrong?! Did I do something wrong to upset you? Are you hurt? Did Peter get to huggy on you again? I'm sorry, Alice! Please forgive me!" Hikari frantically apologized as she panicked. She never got slapped by another girl with watery eyes before. Getting slapped by an angry woman? Yes. Getting slapped by a crying young woman? No.
"How could you be worried about me when you're the one who's injured?" Alice shouted loudly as her hands balled up into tight fists.
"Uh… well… I—uh… I don't care if I'm hurt." Hikari began to answer nervously. This was the first time she has dealt with a crying, yet scolding young woman. "I mean, it's not like my wounds are fatal… it's just a tinny tiny little itsy bitsy wound. Eventually, they would heal sooner or later." She said, using her thumb and finger to show how tiny her wounds are.
"I knew it!" Alice exclaimed. Hikari cringed at the sudden outburst. The keyblade wielder was worried that Alice might've seen her using her keyblade while fighting ten minutes ago. She hoped not. "You don't value your life! You're just like everyone here! Thinking that life isn't valuable and that it could be replaced! Well it's not! Life is very valuable! You only got once chance to live! You can't just carelessly throw yourself in a fight like that! You could've gotten killed! You should've been worried about yourself too! You're bleeding all over for goodness' sake!" She scolded with tears in her eyes.
Hikari blinked. She… has never been scolded like that before… In all her life, she never has once been scolded like that. No one, even her brother, never have gotten so mad and emotional whenever she was hurt like this. They just lectured her to be more carefully while fighting and that's just it. The brunette never felt so… cared about before… this was truly a whole new experience for her.
"Alice…" Hikari sighed out with a small smile. She reached out to her pocket and grabbed her handkerchief. She carefully wiped the tears away from Alice's cheek as she smiled brightly. "It's not that I don't value my life… It's just that…I value everyone else's more, my family and friends the most of course. I viewed their life more precious than mine. Life is irreplaceable just like you said and I can't bear seeing my friends and family are hurt." she admitted.
Every word she said was true. It was from the bottom of her heart.
"Oh my sweet little kitten!" Peter quickly ran up to Hikari and gave her a light hug, carefully not squeezing too tight. "That's speech made me so emotional~! Now let get these germs off of you." he smiled as he hissed out the word 'germs'.
"Peter! Get off!" Alice shouted with a blushing face. She was touched by the brunette's words. "Let's head back to the tower." She said.
Gray nodded his head, "Don't worry, Miss Hikari. I'll call a doctor as soon as we arrive at the tower." He said.
"Ah, just Hikari is fine, Gray." Hikari said with a sheepishly smile.
Ace grinned, "Do you need a lift?" He asked.
"N-No… I don't…" Hikari sighed heavily as she swayed back and forth. Her head was beginning to hurt now. Her vision was blurring and spinning around. "I can… perfectly walk…" she continued weakly.
"You don't sound alright…" Gray placed a hand on his chin.
"Hikari? Are you okay?" Alice asked worriedly.
"Yeah…" Hikari breathe out, falling forward. She didn't hit the ground. Instead, she hit something hard, nothing hard as a rock though. She suddenly felt being lifted up. Her dull blue eyes stared to the person in black. The last thing she could see was a dark blue blur and then she blacked out.
"Julius!" Alice cried. "What are you doing here? I thought you were at the tower with Nightmare?" She tilted her head to the side.
Julius didn't answer. He only stared down at the unconscious foreigner in his arms.
"Mortician! Get your germ full of hands off my precious kitten!" Peter pointed his gun at Julius' head.
Julius stayed quiet for a moment before replying. "I suggest you two get back to Hearts Castle. Nighttime will soon come." He simply said.
"What?! I'm not leaving my kitten when she's in this state!" Peter argued.
"Awww… as much as I love camping, I don't wanna leave Hikari just yet~" Ace sang and his eyes turned to darker shade of red as a smirk appeared on his lips.
"Leave. She is in good hands. You can see her in the next time period when we attend the Role-Holders' event at the Circus." Julius said before turning around, heading back towards the tower.
Peter scowled as Ace 'boo'ed, but the two complied.
Alice and Gray exchanged glances before following the Mortician to the tower.
3=~x~X~x=E
"Agh… my head…" Hikari mumbled as she sat up. Her blue eyes blinked in confusion. Obviously, she wasn't in the forest anymore. The placed she was in is a fairly large room with the regular room furniture. She flinched when she tried to move and found she was covered with white bandages. A brown eyebrow rose up in confusion. She was confused. She was all bandaged up and in an unknown room. "Huh… I wonder who brought me in…" she wondered aloud.
"That would be me." A voice said from beside her bed. The brunette slowly turned her head to her side and saw a man sitting with his arms crossed. His eyes were closed and his look was calm. Julius Monrey is the man's name. Hikari blinked before smiling. Julius kind of reminds her of her friend. "How are you feeling this morning?" he asked.
"Huh what? Morning? Are you sure?" Hikari asked.
Julius nodded his head. "Certain." He pointed his finger to the window. "You've slept through the whole night while the doctor checked on you." he said.
"So I missed Dinner?! Dang it!" Hikari groaned out.
Julius sighed. This girl is hopeless…She's worrying about food than her wounds… so reckless… He rubbed his temples.
Hikari grinned sheepishly at Julius, "So… You're the one who carried me all the way back to the tower?" She asked, just to be certain. The Mortician slowly nodded his head. "Ah… Thanks…" she thanked with a blush.
A guy never carries her… it was always the other way around.
Julius nodded his head. "I'm… sorry." He suddenly apologized.
"For what? I think I'm the one who should apologize… I troubled you a lot and I think I've stained your clothes with my blood… Sorry about that dude…" Hikari scratched the back of her head carefully.
The Mortician shook his head, "No. I accused you for something you didn't do and for that… I apologize." He said, bowing his head slightly.
Hikari blinked before laughing. "Aw! Aw! Aw!" She cried in pain as the laughing hurt her sides. "So that's why I kept on sneezing while I was fighting those rebels! It's was you! Hah! I told my friends that when they're talking about someone, the person would sneeze! Take that everyone! Wohooo! My theory is finally right! Thanks Julius!" She cheered happily, giving Julius a quick hug.
Julius let out a short chuckle. "You surely are weird… You reminded me of a certain Knight…" he concluded.
"Oh ha ha," Hikari laughed dryly placing her hands on her hips. "Very funny, Julius, very funny… Hey… When are we going to the Circus?! I'm excited to go there!" She began to daydream.
"Are you sure you're healthy enough to go there? The doctor says that you need a few time periods of rest." Julius said.
"Pffft~! I'm fine!" Hikari grinned, wiping her nose.
"That's what you said before you passed out." Julius sighed. He stood up, making Hikari look up to him. "The event doesn't start until noon, until then, rest. I'll tell Alice and the others that you're awake." He simple stated.
"Wait! Where are you going?" Hikari asked before Julius left the room.
"Back to work," Julius said and left the room.
Hikari shook her head… Yup… just like her friend alright…
"Bah!" Hikari leaned back against the pillow with a groan. "I'm hungry!"
3=~x~X~x~=E
"Why do I have to wear a skirt?" Hikari whined.
Alice gave a smile, "Because you're a girl." She simply answers. Hikari gave another groan as she dragged her feet to walk. "Hey, at least you're wearing leggings." She said, trying to cheer the brunette up.
Hikari pouted. She was literally forced by Alice to wear… a skirt. She wore a black jacket over a white long sleeved shirt, a black skirt just above her knees, black long leggings, and a pair of white shoes. The brunette kept her chain belts as she didn't want to lose her good luck charm. Although, she did like how the outfit was covering her bandaged wounds.
Alice wore a long bell sleeved black knee length dress with frills and golden rings, a dark blue puffy short sleeved jacket, black long socks, a pair of black shoes, and a black bow with a small heart on it. The dress is one of her usual attire, so it wasn't bothering her much.
Gray let out a sigh. "Please try to be careful around the Joker, Hikari." He said with a monotone voice. "They are very dangerous to be around with." He warned.
"'They'? I thought Joker is one person." Hikari tilted her head to the side confusedly.
"It's hard to explain…" Alice nervously laughed.
"Ah…" Hikari nodded her head. Her ears suddenly heard music playing not far from where they were standing. It was a cheerful tune and an up-beat one too. Curiously, she grabbed Alice's hand and dragged her towards the source of the music. Her blue eyes widened. In front of her, was a huge carnival! There were food stands and game stands everywhere! But the most that attracts her attention was the huge pink and yellow tent at the end of the road. "Flipping Pancake with maple syrup… This is soooo cool!" She squealed happily.
Nightmare chuckled, "Really? I think it's boring." He said.
"Are you kidding?! This is so cool! The last time I've been to a carnival, I was nearly killed!" Hikari cheered happily, jumping in place.
Gray raised an eyebrow, "Killed?" He questions.
"Uh-huh! I almost got ran over by an elephant!" Hikari sighed heavily, rubbing the back of her neck as she remembers the memory. She observed her surroundings. Julius wasn't kidding when all Role-Holders are invited to the event. There were servants from the Hatter's Mansion, the Amusement Park's workers, the maids and guards from the Castle of Hearts, and a few from the Clover Tower. She hasn't seen any Role-Holders yet though. Maybe they were already inside the huge colorful tent. "Oh! Alice! Look! Hot dogs~!" She sang happily.
Alice shook her head with a smile, "I shouldn't have introduced you to hot dogs…" she regretted. "It's like you're addicted to those." she continued.
Hikari bought five hot dogs with the allowance money Nightmare gave her. "One for you, one for you, one for you, and one for me~!" Hikari handed the hot dogs to the three Role-Holders and Alice.
Julius shakes his head, "I don't eat these kind of food." He bluntly said, handing the hot dog back to Hikari.
"Eh… Too bad…" Hikari said with a mouthful of her hot dog. "Here you go, kid." She handed the extra hot dog to a Faceless little girl, who gladly took the hot dog from her with a bright smile. "It's really good, Julius… At first I thought it was a real dog…" she shuddered.
Gray let out a small chuckle. "Ah… You're too naïve…" he said.
"Hey… what's that supposed to mean?" Hikari placed both of her hands on her hip as she finishes her hot dog.
"Nothing," Gray said as he also finishes his hot dog. "Lord Nightmare, please drink your medicine after eating." He said, making Nightmare cringed.
"My kitten~" A voice sang happily, it was clearly Peter White. He threw himself to Hikari, wrapping his arms around the small brunette. He was carefully not to hug her too hard, since she was injured. "How are you feeling my dear kitten?" he asked.
"Better than ever! Thanks for asking Peter!" Hikari answered with a thumb up. She glanced around confusedly. "Where's Ace and Queen Vivaldi?" she asked.
Peter scowled. "Don't worry about the stupid Knight and the old hag, my kitten~" he patted Hikari's head lightly, snuggling closely.
"Peter…" Alice growled, her fist shaking in anger and a visible vein popped on her forehead. "Hands off!" she shouted, punching Peter on his cheek.
Hikari gave a whistle, "Wow~ that's gotta hurt!" she made an 'ouch' look. "You okay there, Peter?" She asked, helping the man up with a nervous smile.
"Don't help him, Hikari! He's a perv!" Alice huffed, crossing her arms over her chest with a pout.
"Oh, we knew that the entire ruckus was caused by you, White." A Queen with dark purple hair said from behind as a Faceless guard was holding an umbrella for her. Vivaldi fanned herself with a black laced fan. She smiled kindly at Alice and Hikari. Her smile was soon replaced by a frown. "We would like to know what happened to Hikari." she demanded.
"Ah… you see… uh… Long short story…" Hikari tried to come up with a lie, but failed.
"Alice and Hikari were attacked by a group of Faceless rebels." Julius stated cooly.
"Julius!"Alice and Hikari hissed out in unison.
"What! We shall behead them! Off with their heads!" Vivaldi ordered.
"Thanks a lot Julius!" Hikari hissed to the Mortician and he replied with a simple shrug. "Queen Vivaldi! You don't have to worry!" She waved her hands in front of her, trying to calm the angered Queen down. She placed on a sheepish grin. "I've already taken care of them and I think they won't be bothering us for awhile." She said.
"We see… Well, shall we go inside?" Vivaldi suggested, walking towards the tent. Alice and Hikari nodded. The other Role-Holders followed the three girls from behind. Peter was trying his best not to glomp Alice and Hikari, because Alice kept on flashing him a glare every second. Hikari only laughed nervously as Vivaldi chuckled.
The brunette stared at the Queen of Heart. The Queen was just so elegant, so beautiful, and she's staring at something? Hikari quickly turn her head towards the direction of what Vivaldi was staring at. It was a cute little plush dolphin doll. The stand owner kept on yelling 'win a toy by knocking six bottles'. The keyblade wielder shrugged.
"I'll give a try," Hikari raised her hand happily as she ran towards the stand. The stand owner nodded and she handed him a few coins before he gave her three balls. "So I just have to knock those bottles in three tries, right?" she asked.
"Correct!" The owner nodded his head.
"What are you doing?" Alice asked as she stood beside the brunette.
"Winning a doll~" Hikari sang as she closed one eye to focus her aim. She stink her tongue out and drew her arm back as far as she can. She quickly threw the ball straight to the bottles, but missed. "Duck!" she and Alice quickly ducks down.
"Ah~ my kitt—," the ball hit Peter right on his forehead.
"Whoops! Sorry Peter!" Hikari shouted as Alice and Vivaldi giggled. The brunette turned back to the bottles. "Okay bottles… just you, me, and this ball! She drew her arm back, she swings, and she throws!" she threw the ball once more and hit the middle of the stack, making the bottles tumbled down. "YES! And victory is mine! The crowds are going wild~!" she laughed happily and began to scream like a crowd would do.
"Very good~!" The owner clapped his hands. "Which prize would you like?" he asked.
"That one please!" Hikari pointed her finger to the doll Vivaldi wanted. She excitedly accepted the doll from the stand owner and turn to Vivaldi with a huge grin. The Queen of Hearts stared at the dolphin for a moment with a confused look. "Here you go, Queen Vivaldi! It's for you! I hope you like it~!" she handed the toy to the Queen.
"But we didn't ask for you to get this for us." Vivaldi tilted her head.
"I know… But you seemed like you wanted it…" Hikari sheepishly said.
Alice giggled. "Awww… You're so kind, Hikari, and good at throwing balls at Peter!" She smiled.
"Thank you…" Vivaldi finally accepts the doll with a blush across her cheek. "Come! Let us sit together!" she dragged the two foreigners into the tent.
"Wa—wait up! I wanna buy another hot dog~!" Hikari whines as she got dragged inside the giant tent by Alice and Vivaldi.
Julius shook his head as Nightmare, Gray, and Peter followed the girls.
"Troublesome girl…" Julius murmured.
3=~x~X~x=E
"New Onee-chan!" The Bloody Twins cried happily, throwing themselves to the brunette.
"Hey there, you brats!" Hikari grinned as she placed her hands on each of their heads.
Dee tilted his head, blue eyes blinking in confusion. "What happened to New Onee-chan? You got more bandages than before we last saw you…" He asked.
"We got jumped by a group of rebels, which reminds me…" Alice said and cracked her knuckles. She glared at the twins, raising her fist at them both. "Now get off of her! She's still injured!" she scolded.
"Sorry New Onee-chan! We didn't know." Dee and Dum cried in unison.
"It's fine, you Brats." Hikari said, smiling. "How about we take a seat?" she suggested.
"Okay~!" The twins sang happily.
"Alice," Blood called out with Elliot right behind him. The chestnut-haired girl turned around on her heels and saw the Mafia Boss was right behind her. A faint blush was seen across her cheeks. "Shall we get seated?" he asked, smiling a little.
"A-Ah… Yes," Alice answered.
"No, they shall seat by us and not you." Vivaldi hook an arm on Alice's arm and dragged her away. She did the same to Hikari who was waiting for the Bloody Twins and the Cheshire Cat to stop arguing. The Queen of Hearts dragged the two foreigners to the front seats. She sat beside Alice, smiling proudly as she fanned herself with her red fan. The other male Role-Holders glared daggers at the Queen, but she chooses to ignore the idiots. The dolphin plushy was seated on her lap. "We thanked you once more for the gift, Hikari." Vivaldi said with her eyes closed.
"No problem Queen Vivaldi, anything for a friend." Hikari said as the lights flickered off. Everyone turned their attention to the center as the lights dances around the tent.
"Ladies and gentlemen from all ages, I welcome you all to my Circus!" A disembodied voice greeted friendlily and loudly. Hikari glanced around for the source, excited and a bit weary at the same time. "Now as you all know, I presented this show to the new foreigner!" the voice continued.
A light was shined down to the brunette, who covered her eyes instantly. "Gah! Too bright!" She whispered to herself and she felt a hand was placed on her shoulder. She turned around and saw a man. The man had his left eye covered with a black eye patch. He wore a silly dark grey hat with the same matching outfit. There's also a white porcelain mask over three roses on his left hip. The brunette had to glance up to the tall man with a surprised look. "Huh? Wait! What did you just say?!" she exclaimed.
"Ah~ just relax and enjoy the show, my dear." The Ringmaster said with a bow. He disappeared in a cloud of smoke and appeared in the center of the ring. The light switched off from the brunette and turned back on to the red headed Ringmaster. "Now, ladies and gentlemen enjoy the show!" he cheered and the crowd clapped slowly.
Hikari was the only one cheering loudly. She quickly sat back down with nervously. Her blue eyes watched as the animals and their trainers came out. An elephant let out a loud trumpet noise from its trunk. It was weird seeing the animals were also eyeless. The excited keyblade wielder clapped her hands loudly as the elephant stood on two of its feet, on a ball. The red headed Ringmaster was standing on the elephant's trunk, juggling many balls in his hands. He had on a charming smile while doing his act.
"Wow! He's good!" Hikari said to Vivaldi before glancing back to the watch the show. She couldn't even juggle two balls! Let alone three!
The Ringmaster jumped down to the ground as confetti was flying everywhere. The elephant blow his trunk loudly again as a few performers began to stand on the balls with either their hands or legs, smiling happily. Acrobats began to play their role and then soon came the most horrifying thing the brunette has ever seen. Clowns!
'Ugh… They're mocking me with those thick make-ups and those big red noses…Little creeps. I can still remember the clown nurse a few months ago… ugh! The horror!' Hikari shuddered as her face turned into a sour look.
Nightmare chuckled at Hikari's thoughts. She was excited a minute ago before she seen the clowns and now her mood was back to a sour one. He began to read every Role-Holders' mind. They were still the same. Alice still respects the Joker, Peter was thinking of Alice and Hikari, Vivaldi thought about the plush toy, Ace… well he thought of something, the Bloody Twins thought about injuring another acrobat, Blood and Elliot kept a string-full of curses at the Joker, Gowland thought about a competition between his Amusement Park and the Circus, Boris thought the same thing as the twins, and Pierce… oh the poor boy was scared out of his tail. The sick dream demon didn't dared to read Julius' and Gray's minds, since they were giving him glares.
"Hey, Hikari…" Alice cupped her mouth and whispered. "What do you think of the show so far?" She asked.
Hikari cupped her mouth. "I think it's fantastic… Until those clowns show up…" She mumbled the last part.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Please pay your attention to the performer on the tightrope~!" The Ringmaster exclaimed, moving his arms up in the air, glancing above him.
Hikari raised an eyebrow. It was a Faceless woman. The woman was nervous, she could tell it clearly from her expression even without eyes. The jester woman was trembling as she steps one foot on the tightrope. Hikari wasn't amused as the crowd goes 'oh' and 'ah'. Clearly, something was wrong. A performer wouldn't act so nervous, even if it was their first time. The brunette kept on a keen eye on the woman as she scowled at the clowns inside the ring.
'Cih… Clowns…' Hikari glared daggers at the clowns before turning her attention back to the woman on the tightrope. The woman was already half across the tightrope when it began to shake roughly. The brunette observed the scene as the crowd goes 'oh!' in a more awed and surprised way. They probably thought it was an act since this was a show. 'That lady's going to fall…' she thought negatively.
"Psst! Hikari?" Alice whispered. The brunette turned to her with a frown. "I think this isn't part of the show…" she concluded, looking worriedly at the woman on the tightrope.
"Yeah," Hikari shortly answered. It would be better if there was a net bellow her! But no! There wasn't any net! If that woman falls, she would be as flat as a pancake! The keyblade wielder isn't going to let anyone die when she was around. She made a promise and even kept a word of honor. "Does the Ringmaster know about this?" she whispered.
Alice shook her head, "It seems like White doesn't know anything about this…" she said.
"Ooooohhhh!"
Alice and Hikari turned their heads towards the woman and saw she was wobbling on the tightrope. The crowd screamed in horror as the woman falls backwards. The keyblade wielder quickly rose up to her feet and sprinted towards the area on where the tightrope is, zooming pass by the Ringmaster. She jumped and reached her arms out. Luckily, the brunette caught the woman performer on time. The performer landed in her arms before she began to somersault across the large ring. She released her grip on the performer as she continued to somersault around, hitting her head on the wall of the ring.
"Hikari!" Alice quickly ran towards the brunette with worried eyes. "Are you okay?" she asked.
The brunette groaned, moving her legs to her front as she was lying upside down. "Yeah… I'm cool…" She replied and glanced over to the performer. "Hey lady… You okay? You seem to be shaken up a little bit. Are you afraid of heights?" She carefully asked.
"N-No. Of course not…" The performer said before flinching.
"You sprained your ankle?" Alice asked, tilting her head to the side. "Why didn't you tell White that you were injured? He'll surely understand that his performer is injured…" she said.
"It seems that we have a bit of an accident. I am truly sorry, but I must end this performance for the day… My performers will escort all of you out." The Ringmaster exclaimed, the crowd seems to understand the situation as they just left the tent with worried looks. The Role-Holders were shoved out of the tent by his workers. The Ringmaster sighed heavily before turning around to face the three girls on the ground, one faceless and two foreigners. A smirk appeared on his lips as he approached the girls. He never expected a foreigner would just jump to rescue his performer. He was amused. At first, he wants to know what she would react when a performer dies in a performance. Interesting indeed.
"Ah… Thank you for your concern about my workers, Alice dear." The Ringmaster thanked, bowing. He turned to Hikari with a smile as he crouched down to her level. "And you… I must thank you for saving one of my workers. How will I ever repay you?" He smiled warmly.
"Oh… It's no biggie," Hikari replied as she blushed in embarrassment. She scratched the back of her head with a sheepish grin as the Ringmaster chuckles. "Unless~" She began, smiling mischievously.
Alice smacked the back of Hikari's head. "No! You're not asking for a lifetime supply of hot dogs!" She yelled.
"Aw! How did you know?! Are you Nightmare in disguised?!" Hikari cried, glaring at Alice. The chestnut-haired girl huffed before placing her hands on her hips. The two girls heard the Ringmaster chuckled lightly. He seemed like a nice man. "By the way, Mr. Ringmaster? Your show is amazing~" Hikari sang.
"Why, thank you," The Ringmaster said. "I am Joker, please to meet you." he reached his hand out.
"So you're the famous Joker I've been hearing about," Hikari grinned as Joker helped her up to her feet. The red-headed Ringmaster helped Alice up before snapping his fingers to some clowns to take the injured performer away. "I can see why they talked about you a lot, Joker!" she smiled.
Joker chuckled. "Really?"
"Hikari! Your cheek!" Alice exclaimed worriedly. Hikari turn to her with a questioning look. "It's bleeding! You must've reopened it when you took that fall…" she grabbed a handkerchief and dabbed Hikari's cheek lightly.
"Thanks Alice…" Hikari thanked, placing the handkerchief on her cheek.
A smirk appeared on Joker's lips. He has heard about the issue in Wonderland that after a few time periods, a foreigner hasn't drunk the Medicine of Hearts yet. It was spreading like wildfire. "My dear, do you still have the Medicine of Hearts with you?" He asked.
"Uh yeah… Here," Hikari said, handing the vial to the Ringmaster. "Why?"
Joker placed his hands on Alice's shoulders, keeping a firm grip. "It'll help you heal your wounds." He said.
"Oh yeah! So that's why it's called the Medicine of Hearts! It's actually a medicine! Psssh! Why didn't I think of that? Thanks for getting to the point, Joker!" Hikari happily grinned, taking the heart-shaped lid off.
A hand covers Alice's mouth as Hikari tipped the vial to drink the liquid. Hikari's nose scrunched up in disgust at the distasteful liquid. She wiped her mouth with the sleeve of her jacket as she turned to Joker and Alice with a sour look on her face.
"That tastes awful!" Hikari cried, sticking her tongue out as she gripped on the vial tightly. "I rather have hot dog instead!" she cried.
Alice slapped Joker's hand away. "H-Hikari… Now that you've drank the Medicine of Hearts… You'll have to compete in the game!" She exclaimed with a worried look.
"What game?" The brunette asked confusedly, still trying to get rid of the bitter taste in her tongue.
"The Game of Hearts of course." Joker answered.
"Wow… a very creative name…" Hikari said sarcastically. "What about the rules? Don't you have to explain in to me?" she asked, sighing.
Joker smiled, "Of course. There's only one rule…" he began as Alice gave a sad smile to Hikari, who in return raised an eyebrow confusedly.
"Everyone will fall in love with you."
A/N: Ah so the Joker (White) was the one who convinced Hikari to drink the Medicine of Hearts… Who would've guessed XD?
Don't worry in a few chapters, Hikari is going to be a 'normal' girl without her magic and keyblade ^^
Anyway, I've checked for the name of the game that Alice has to participate it and it's only called 'the game'. So I thought why not change it to 'the Game of Hearts', instead? And also, I don't know about the rules, but I've read the 'everyone will fall in love with you' in the manga version.
*Alice's dress is from Clover no Kuni no Alice: Heart no Kishi (manga)
Special thanks to: LuNaLoVeComiCs, Sleeping Moon, and lollipoploveforever for adding this story to their favs!
Special thanks to: LuNaLoVeComiCs and Sleeping Moon for adding this story to their alerts!
Reviews are very appreciated, and please no flames please ^^
R&R!