A/N: A new chapter! I'm on a roll for this story!
Sleeping Moon: Thank you so much! And I have a lot of catching up to do!
TheParadoxicalOxymoron: Hehehe I'm back! I will continue!
I own nothing except the plot and the OCs
Mission 7
The Gryphon
The clocks inside Julius' office tick rhythmically, ticking after one and another. The Mortician sat behind his desk, fixing the broken clocks diligently. Every now and then, his eyes would glance over to the brunette sitting across from him. He couldn't help but feel a bit uncomfortable with the staring.
Alice never sat around and do nothing. She would always ask Julius for a job, like doing chores, cooking or even shopping for the materials he needed to fix the clocks. That girl just can't sit around. Unlike Alice, Hikari didn't ask for anything. The brunette was just sitting there, resting her elbows on his desk with her head propped up by her hands.
Finally, Julius decided to break the silence. "…is there something you need?" he asked, tilting his head up from his work to face the brunette.
"Can't I just watch my favorite Role-Holder do his work?" Hikari asked, giving a close-eyed smile to the long-haired man.
Julius raised an eyebrow. "Cut the crap… What do you want?" he stoically asked again, glaring at the keyblade wielder. There was a moment of silence. He watch as she began to tense up, flinching at his cold stare.
"Ahaha… I guess you figured it out…" Hikari laughed nervously, scratching the back of her head. She leaned back on her chair and crossed her hands behind her head. She took a deep breath from her nose, exhaling a second later. "I…kind of said that I would somehow replace Blood's teapot… but…" she trailed off, remembering back what the twins had said to her a couple of time periods ago.
"Hey, New Onee-chan? You're going to work for us to pay off your debt!" she could still perfectly hear their voices with those devious smiles.
She clenched her hands, balling them up to fists as her look darkens a little. "Those little brats somehow twist my words! They would make me work for it! I said I was going to pay them, but not by working for them! Stupid brats!" she rambled on.
Julius sighed. "How much do you want?"
Hikari blinked. "Er... I don't exactly know, but I guess that the teapot is around 50.000 G to 100.000 G probably?" she said nervously, hoping that Julius has the money to pay her debt.
The Mortician almost chocked. "...I apologize, but I don't have that much. Therefore I cannot help you." he said, staring at the brunette.
A heavy sigh escaped the keyblade wielder's lips, her shoulders sagged. "It's fine... I don't expect you to have that much anyway." she said, scratching the back of her neck.
Julius' eyes narrowed. "Are you saying that I'm poor?" he implied, crossing his arms over his chest.
Hikari visibly cringed. "No! No! I'm not saying that! It's just that I don't expect anyone to have that much money!" She waved her hands in front of her face, trying to convince Julius that she wasn't trying to mock him.
The man in front of her sweat-dropped. "I see… I didn't see it coming. This is actually a first. A foreigner who has a large debt to the Hatters." He concluded, frowning. He wasn't really all that friendly with Blood and the rest of the Hatters. Especially with the March Hare. He didn't tolerate any rule breaker, Role Holder or not, everyone has to follow the rules. "I wish you good luck then." He closed his eyes before opening them a second later, going back to fix the clock in his hands.
Hikari turned to Julius, "How did you know that I have something in mind? Do you have powers like Nightmare?" she suspiciously asked.
"It's been three time periods. You seemed to be an outdoor person and you always follow Alice everywhere." Julius curtly replied, his eyes glued on fixing the clock. Hikari wasn't really the type to just sit around all day and watch him work. She was active, always overreacting over something so small and yet that was amusing. Then again, she could be as lazy as Nightmare when it comes to helping him with groceries or arranging paper works.
"I'm really that predictable, huh?" Hikari grinned sheepishly. Julius didn't replied. Instead, he just gave a deep sigh. Her blue eyes watch as Julius' fingers elegantly fix the clock. "How can you fix something so elegantly?" she bluntly questioned, staring at Julius.
The man almost choked on his own saliva. "What does that supposed to mean, exactly?" He cleared his throat, coughing into his fist.
The brunette shrugged, "Eh… When you were fixing the clock… you look so calm and elegant. You know, like a girl when she was doing the job that she likes? Yeah, it's like that." She could already feel the deadly glare Julius was sending her. If only looks could kill, she would be dead by now. She flinched at the dark aura radiating from the Mortician. A forced laughed escaped her lips. "Ahaha! But I didn't mean that you're a girl, Julius! It's just that you work like one hahaha! Ah uh… I'll be quiet now…" she stopped laughing when she spotted Julius reaching for his wrench.
Julius sighed heavily. The foreigner was definitely different. "Very well then," he suddenly said. He placed the screwdriver down beside the clock. He moved his finger to point at the box of clocks laying at the corner of the room. "Bring that box to me." He ordered.
Hikari blinked. "Hah? Why should I?" she asked with an annoyed look. She crossed her arms over her chest. "Your legs doesn't seem to be broken." The brunette retorted.
A visible vein popped on Julius' forehead. He took deep breaths, trying to calm himself down. Either this girl was oblivious to everything around her or just down right absentminded. He was lending a hand to her problem! Even though he might not offered it directly, the least she can do is bring him his box out of kindness.
The brunette laughed, clutching her sides. "Hahaha! Sorry, sorry! I've always wanted to try that line with someone! Riku would've hit me if I say that to him!" she kept on laughing, wiping the tears away with her index finger. She heaved herself up off her chair, walked towards the corner of the room, and picked up the box with her hands. She turned around on her heels, smiling at the Mortician. "I'd love to help out, as long as it doesn't involve cleaning or paperwork!" she grinned.
Hikari placed the box on the desk, careful not to knock anything down. "Anything else you want me to fetch?" she asked, hands on her hips.
"Aren't you afraid of me?" Julius stared at the teenage girl, his midnight blue eyes locked with Hikari's light blue ones. "You already know what my role is, right?"
"Of course I do! Ace told me!" Hikari replied cheerfully, sitting back down. She placed her arms on the table and slightly buried her face in her crossed arms. She tilted her chin up, staring at Julius' eyes with a soft smile on her lips. "I'm easily angered and lazy. I… wish I can be someone like you. A person who's very devoted in his job and act calm in every situation." She sincerely said, a small blush on her cheeks.
Julius stared at the girl with wide eyes, a tint of pink dusting his cheeks. "Don't say things like that…" he murmured.
"Eh? Why shouldn't I? Is it wrong to compliment someone at Wonderland?" Hikari asked confusedly, raising an eyebrow. Julius didn't answered. "Uh… okay then… how about… I wish I can be someone like you who can sometimes be feminine." She grinned happily, giving a thumbs up.
This time, a wrench was thrown. It whizzed past Hikari's head, striking the wall behind her. The brunette instantly paled as she looked over her shoulder to find the wrench deep inside the wall. She quickly stood up, her hands raised up defensively.
"Fetch me that wrench." Julius stoically ordered, glaring daggers at the girl.
"Yes sir!" Hikari quickly saluted, jogging to the wall when the wrench was stuck at. She pulled the wrench off the wall and examined the damage. For someone who doesn't seem to like going out, Julius has an amazing strength when he's angry. She gingerly gave Julius his wrench back and sat quietly on her chair. Julius was scarier than Riku when he was mad. 'Note to self…never ever make Julius mad… or else he would hit me with a wrench.' She mentally said, averting her eyes to the Mortician.
'How in the world did the Prime Minister fall in love with this one?' Julius sighed as he began to ticker with the clock, screwing the gears back together. Sure, he understands why Peter brought Alice to Wonderland, but he didn't understand why the rabbit brought this… this obnoxious girl. Perhaps the Prime Minister was getting desperate to get someone to fall in love with him. 'Couldn't he at least pick someone more…mature?' he frowned.
"It's really rare of you to come visit the Clover Tower, Blood." Alice's voice snapped both the Mortician and the keyblade wielder from their thoughts.
Hikari happily turned her head to the door. 'Alice~! My savior!' she mentally cheered. She was happy that Alice has returned from her visit to the Hatter's Mansion. The young woman was the only one Julius has ever warmed up to! Suddenly, Hikari froze. 'WAIT! Di-Did Al-Alice just said BLOOD?!' she scooted closer to Julius—who in return, stared weirdly at her.
"Has it been really that long?" was Blood's reply. The door's knob was turned and a tall man entered the room, along with a beautiful lady. His deep blue eyes traveled around Julius's room. His eyes landed on the brunette hiding poorly behind the dark-haired man. A smile made its way up to the Mad Hatter's lips. He tipped his hat up. "Good to see you again, Miss Hikari. It has been awhile, hasn't it?" He greeted.
The brunette stood up, not moving from her spot behind Julius. "Errr… It's nice to see you again, Blood." She averted her eyes. The air was thick. She could just feel it.
Alice glanced back and forth between Blood and Hikari. She tilted her head, placing her index finger on her chin. "Is there something that I missed?" she asked.
Blood simply smiled. "There is nothing for you to be concerned about, Alice." He turned to Hikari—who kept on looking away, avoiding eye contact with him. "Now that I have found you, Miss Hikari, shall we get down to business?"
"Business?" Alice raised an eyebrow.
"Miss Hikari, you owe the Hatters 500.000 G." Julius, Alice and Hikari flinched at the high amount of money.
Hikari's left eye twitched. "WHAT?! There's no way a stupid teapot cost that much!" she argued.
"That teapot is especially made by hand. It is one of a kind." Blood sighed sadly, closing his eyes. "It is the teapot that I usually drank my Flowery Orange Pekoe tea." He added.
The keyblade wielder scratched the back of her head. "Look… I know I'd said that I'll pay you back, but I didn't say that I will work for it."
Blood placed his hand on his chin, "Work you say? That is an excellent idea, Miss Hikari." He said, smiling at the paling brunette. "Now come, Miss Hikari. From now on you shall work for the Hatters until your debt is paid." he reached his gloved hand out for the girl to take.
"Hold on! I didn't say—," Hikari paused when Blood taps his cane to the floor. It suddenly turned to a machine gun, pointed directly at the brunette's head. Julius rose up from his seat as Alice backs away from the Mad Hatter. "Where the heck did that came from?!" she exclaimed, staring at the machine gun with wide eyes.
"Blood! Isn't that a bit too far?" Alice questioned.
"Nonsense Alice. I didn't go too far."
Julius placed his arm in front of Hikari, glaring at the black-haired man. "Hatter, this is a neutral territory, put away your weapon this instant." He ordered, clenching his wrench on his other hand. His wrench began to emit light. In a matter of seconds, the wrench turned to a glass-looking pistol. The Mortician pointed his gun right back at the Hatter. "Leave this tower." He said again.
Blood smiled, narrowing the gun to Julius' head.
A hand on Julius' shoulder stopped him from pulling the trigger. His midnight blue eyes glanced down to the girl behind him. "I don't like it when someone sticks their nose in my problems." She said, her eyes staring at Blood. "It's okay, Julius. I'll work for Blood and get my debt paid in a matter of time periods! Just you wait and see!" She grinned, snapping her fingers.
"Excellent choice, Miss Hikari." Blood retreated, his machine gun turning back to his diamond cane. "Now come along Miss Hikari." He turned around on his heels, walking out of the room.
Once Blood was out of the room, Alice stared worriedly at Hikari. "I'm really sorry about Blood, Hikari… He sometimes can be a jerk." The chestnut-haired woman sighed, placing her hand on her forehead.
Hikari laughed. "Nah! No worries! It's cool." She walked around the table, hands inside her pants' pockets. "I guess I have to go now… I'll visit you every time I get the chance."
Alice shook her head, smiling a little. "I'll come and visit you every day." She gave a short hug, patting Hikari's head.
"Hehe, thanks Alice!" Hikari smiled warmly at Alice before following Blood out of the room. "See you guys later~!" she waved her hand goodbye to Julius and Alice.
Alice smiled widely, "She's a good girl, eh, Julius?" she turned to face Julius, who was just staring at the door.
Julius sighed, turning the gun back to his wrench. He placed the wrench down on his desk and sat down on his chair, taking the screwdriver into his hand. He began to continue his work. "…she's stupid, but courageous." He mumbled.
"What was that?"
"…nothing."
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
Alice hummed as she make Julius' morning coffee. She stirred the coffee with a spoon, inhaling the aroma of caffeine lingering in the air. She added a teaspoon of sugar and poured cream, adding more flavor to the coffee, just how Julius likes it. She placed the mugs of coffee on the tray. Gray and Nightmare weren't that picky when it comes to coffee. As long as it's good, they'll drink whatever Alice makes for them.
She carried the tray to Julius' office—where the three were usually found in the morning. She opened the door with one hand as the other held the tray carefully. Just like she predicted, the three were inside Julius' office. She set the tray down on to the table in the middle of the room.
"Good morning, Alice." Gray greeted with a small smile.
Alice handed him his mug, "Good morning, Gray. Could you give this to Nightmare?" she handed him another mug.
"Certainly." Gray nodded his head, taking the mug from Alice's small hands.
The previous foreigner took Julius' mug and walking to him. "Here you go, Julius." She said, a smile on her lips.
Julius nodded his head in thanks. He tipped the mug up a little, taking a small sip of the caffeine. "75 points." He scored, placing the mug down in front of him.
"You seemed to be in a good mood, Alice." Nightmare noted, staring at the young woman with his visible eye.
Alice touched her cheeks, "Eh? Really? Am I showing it on my face?" she asked.
Gray chuckled. "Yes. We can see it clearly."
Alice giggled into her loose fist, "Well… Of course! Today's the day I can visit Hikari." She said happily. She missed the energetic and over-enthusiastic girl running around the tower. "It's been five time periods and it's really quiet without her. Blood won't let me see Hikari until she's ready…whatever that means. He said that I can go see Hikari today." She explained.
Nightmare suddenly gave a short laugh. "You'll be surprised."
Alice blinked confusedly. "Eh? What does that supposed to mean?" she asked, giving a look.
The sickly dream demon's tilted his head, giving a close-eyed smile. "I can't tell. Hikari told me so. She said that she wanted to see your reaction." He replied.
"Alright then…" Alice trailed off. She walked towards the door, glancing over her shoulder to say goodbye. "I'll come back soon."
The young woman walked down the path to the Hatter Mansion, admiring the same view around her. She never gets tired looking at trees. The early morning air was fresh and not a single gunshot was heard from miles. It was surprisingly a calm and peaceful morning in Wonderland. She continued her walk till she reached a large gate separating her from the mansion. As usual, Dee and Dum were nowhere to be found near the gates.
Alice sighed, gripping the metal bars. 'Where are those two?' she thought, glancing around.
"Eh! It's Onee-chan!" A voice surprised her and two pair of arms wrapped themselves around her waist. "Welcome back, Onee-chan!" the twins greeted cheerfully.
"Good morning you two." Alice placed her hands on their shoulder.
Dee grabbed Alice's left wrist and Dum grabbed her right wrist. "C'mon Onee-chan! Boss' been expecting you!" they dragged her inside, laughing along.
"W-Wait! I can go on my own!" Alice cried frantically as she tried to keep up with the Twins' speed.
Alice panted as the Twins released her wrists. She straightened her posture and glanced around. The garden was set for a morning tea party. Red roses decorated the garden beautifully. Fresh baked scones served with clotted cream and jam was set on the table. Finger sandwiches and various types of sponge cakes were also placed neatly on the long table. The smell was mouthwatering.
"Ah, Alice… So nice of you to join us in our morning tea." Blood said, taking small quiet sips from his tea.
"Morning Alice!" Elliot grinned.
"Please, have a seat." Blood directed his hand to the chair across from him.
A butler pulled the chair out for Alice. He opened the napkin and placed it over Alice's lap. He bowed his head respectfully and turned around. He came back, bringing a teapot of Darjeeling tea, Alice's favorite type of tea. He elegantly pour the tea into her teacup.
"Ah… thank you—?!" Alice's eyes widened when she saw the butler—the servant—has eyes. She almost jump from her seat if it wasn't for the butler pouring hot tea into her teacup. 'Could it be that Blood has found another Role-Holder?!' she thought, a hand on her chin as her nose scrunch up in a thinking manner.
"Here you go, Miss Alice." The butler said, smiling.
'Th-That voice… It's impossible!' Alice's left eye twitched when she heard the butler's voice. His voice was smooth. He mixed her tea with another ingredient. She raised her shaky finger, pointing at the butler. "Hi-Hikari?! Is that you?" she questioned.
The butler cracked a smile. "Hahaha!" he finally laughed, clutching his sides. "I knew that your reaction would be funny! Hahaha!"
"Onee-chan was so surprised!" Dee laughed. "You weren't the only one!" Dum added before joining his brother.
"W-What has Blood done to you?!" Alice shrieked.
Hikari's laughter dies down to a chuckle. "Well… at first he told me to wear the maid's uniform, but when he saw me wearing it, he says that I look like a gay crossdresser…" she sighed, crossing her arms across her chest. She remembered day one when she started working for Blood. "So here I am! Personally, I think I look quite good in the butler's uniform!" she finished.
Blood nodded. "During the five time periods, I've been teaching her the proper way to greet a guest. Trust me, dear Alice, it was hard. She doesn't quite have the etiquette of a proper lady or a gentleman." The Mad Hatter said proudly of his work.
Elliot laughed. "Took me by surprise when I found her walking around the mansion wearing the butler's uniform." He turned his head, giving a smile at the brunette standing beside Alice.
"I…I see…" was all that Alice could say. Her greyish blue eyes stared at Hikari's face. Come to think of it, the brunette's face was rather boyish from the start. If it wasn't for her feminine looking eyes, she might pulled it off as a boy. A small blush appeared on Alice's cheeks when Hikari caught her staring.
"Ahahaha, this is only temporary! Well, until I get paid 500.000 G of course." Hikari sulked, her shoulders sagged.
"Now, now, that isn't the right posture for a gentleman." Blood scolded.
"Gentleman my butt! I'm a girl!" Hikari pointed her finger.
"Do you want me to double your debt?" Blood asked, placing the teacup on the saucer. Hikari flinched and stayed quiet. "Good boy."
'This is pure blackmail!' Hikari cried in her mind, fixing her posture. "Do you want something else, Miss Alice?" she puts on her act.
"Errr… no thank you."
"New Onee-chan!" Dum called out from across the table. "Or should we call you, 'New Onii-san'?" Dee teased.
A visible vein popped on the brunette's forehead. "Yes? Is there something you need, Mister Dee and Dum?" she strained her voice, trying to control her anger.
"Can you get us some cake?" They both asked in unison.
'Get it on your own, you little punks!' Hikari angrily thought. The cakes were right in front of them! With a heavy heart, the brunette walked around the table and took the plate of cakes to the twins. "Is there anything else you need?"
"Yes! Feed us New Onii-san!"
Before Hikari could even bonk their head with her fist, Elliot who was beside them beat her to it. "Oi! Knock it off you Bloody Brats! Give the poor girl some space would ya?" he scolded.
"Thank you Elliot." Hikari sighed in relief.
"Boo~ we were only having some fun…" The Twins pouted.
Alice laughed nervously before sipping her tea. Her eyes sparkled when she tasted the sweet flavor of her tea. "The tea tasted different…" she said.
Hikari heard her. She grinned. "I put orange blossom honey in it, I hope you don't mind."
"No, no! It taste great." Alice reassured with a smile.
"Haha… I'm glad you like it. You're actually the first one to ever like my tea. I'm really happy." Hikari admitted sheepishly, blushing in embarrassment. "Back at my home, everyone was too afraid of my cooking! I think I scared them with it. The only thing I'm good at is making tea, but I guess I've already put myself in a bad image as a cook."
Alice giggled, "You're just like Gray! He's only good at making hot cocoa!"
"Eh? Really? I'm glad I've found someone!" Hikari laughed.
The two girls laughed.
"No fair! We also wanted to try New Onii-san's tea!" Both Dee and Dum wrapped their arms around Hikari's waist, refusing to let go. Hikari tried prying them off of her, but their grip was just too strong. She sighed, looking over at Elliot with a pitiful face, hoping that he would help her. Elliot chuckled nervously, taking the twins by the scruff of their shirt. "You just want New Onii-san all to yourself, you Chicky Rabbit!"
"Don't talk unnecessary things!" Elliot shouted.
"Hey, hey, don't fight…" Alice calmed them down.
Blood calmly sipped his tea, "Speaking of teas…" he reached for something inside his coat. A piece of paper was between his index and middle finger. He slipped it out and held it out of Hikari to take. The brunette took the paper a bit hesitantly. She looked at it, blinking confusedly at her new boss. "Here is the list of teas that we have run out. I want you to go into town and buy them for me." He said.
"You can find most of them at the town in our territory, but you need to go to other territories' town to buy some of the tea on the list." The tea addict Hatter explained.
"Flowery oakey pokey? What kind of tea brand is that?" Hikari squinted her eyes as she read the tea brand out loud. Don't get her wrong, Blood's handwriting was pretty, but she can't quite read the font he uses.
"It's Flowery Orange Pekoe." Blood corrected. "You can find those at Castle of Hearts' town. I'd be careful if I were you. The last servant who went there got shot by one of the guards of hearts." A smirk appeared on his lips as he averted his eyes to his new butler.
'I think you hired me because you only wanted your Flowery Orange Pekoe tea…' Hikari deadpan, shoving the piece of paper inside her coat.
"I want you to return to the mansion with the teas in three time periods." Blood ordered, placing a bag on money in Hikari's hand. "Don't use it for your personal needs, Miss Hikari."
Hikari glared, "I'm not that kind of person." She irritably said, walking away.
Alice giggled nervously, "Aren't you a bit too hard on Hikari, Blood?"
"I'm doing this for her own good." Blood simply replied with a charming smile. "She's very much spoiled in her old life. I'm simply doing a favor. Once she has returned to her own world, she will be an independent woman."
'Independent?! I'm very much independent even without your help!' Hikari angrily thought, a visible vein appeared when Blood kept on saying her negatives rather than her positives. 'I can't wait till my debt is paid… I'm never coming back!'
"Blood~!" A high pitched voice sang.
"Hmm? Good morning, Miss Laura." The Mad Hatter greeted, taking a sip from his teacup. He didn't look back like the other three Role-Holders.
Hikari observed Blood's reaction. Her boss didn't pay any attention to the blonde woman when she wrapped her arms around his neck. Instead, he was more interested in his tea. The keyblade wielder placed a hand on her chin. She glanced over to Alice. Her friend was staring at the interaction between Blood and Laura with sad eyes. Alice looked away, staring at her lap. Hikari blinked. She may not be good at romance, but she knows when a girl is in love. She had a lot of experience. She was always dragged to be the problem listener when a girl needs to talk her heart out. Though, she can't give out advices, she can be a good listener.
"Hmmm?" Laura's emerald green eyes gazed over the new face. "Who's this? Are you a new Role-Holder or something?" she asked, standing in front of Hikari, inspecting over her face.
'She doesn't even remember me!' Hikari thought and stared down at the shorter woman. 'That's a plus I guess… It's a good thing we didn't meet over the past five time periods.'
"Ah—," A hand stopped Elliot from continuing.
Hikari smiled, placing a hand over her chest. "Yes. I'm a new Role-Holder. Griffin Hawkeye, the Gryphon. It's a pleasure to meet you Miss Laura." She lowered her voice and kneeled down in a gentlemanly manner. She took Laura's right hand and the back of her hand, looking up at her eyes, giving a wink. "Master Blood found me half-dead and took me in. I am forever in his dept." she gave the best charming smile she could muster.
Laura blushed, "A-Ah… welcome to the Hatter Mansion then…" she looked away.
Hikari stood up, standing straight, the smile still plastered on her lips.
Elliot leaned down to Hikari's ear, placing a hand in front of his mouth. "Oi, Hikari, what are you doing?" he whispered.
Hikari placed her hand in front of her mouth, leaning closer to Elliot's large ear. "I know what I'm doing. I just wanna make sure something." She whispered back. She felt a tug on her sleeve. Her blue eyes gazed down at the pair of twins, who were staring at her. "What?" she hissed.
"New Onii-san is playing the Gryphon?" They both asked quietly.
Hikari nodded her head. "Uh-huh! Now you two are going to call me 'Griffin' whenever Laura is around, alright?" she placed her finger against her lips.
The twins nodded their head, pressing their own finger on their lips.
"Griffin… Shouldn't you be going?" Blood cleared his throat, smirking.
"Ah, yes." Hikari nodded her head. She turned around on her heels.
"Wait! Don't you want to stay for a bit longer?" Laura asked, batting her eyelashes at Hikari. She wrapped her arms around Hikari's arm, hugging it close to her chest.
The brunette hid her shudder. She forced a smile. "I'm sorry, Miss Laura, but Master Blood has ordered me to pick up something important and it cannot be delayed." She said, gently prying Laura's hand off of her. She walked around the long table, stopping beside Alice who kept on looking down the entire time. She held her hand out to Alice. "Now then, Miss Alice? Shall we take our leave?"
Alice blinked before taking Hikari's gloved hand. "A-Ah…yes."
Hikari leaded the young woman away from the small party. She looked over her shoulder, seeing many different expression in one glance. She saw Blood gave his famous smirk as Elliot just stared at her and Alice with a confused look. The twins looked excited and as for Laura…she looked mad. The keyblade wielder let a soft sigh escaped her lips as they both made it out of the Hatter's territory.
"Cih! That was tiring! I'm impressed at myself for how long I can keep up my act!" Hikari wiped the sweat on her forehead with her sleeve. She averted her eyes to Alice, catching a glimpse of her sadden face. The keyblade wielder decided not to ask her anything. The two continued walking to nowhere in particular.
"Errr… Hey Alice?" Hikari began awkwardly, trying to lighten the mood. "Do you want to go to the town at Clover Tower first? The list said that a few tea brands are over there… I can take you back to the tower if you want…" she offered. The keyblade wielder worriedly stared at the young woman. "…Alice?" she waved her hand in front of Alice's face.
Alice snaps out of her thoughts. "Ah! I'm sorry! I've spaced out." she said, giving a forced laugh. "So what were you saying again?" she asked, giving a close-eyed smile.
"Uh… Do you want to go to the town at Clover tower? I can also take you back to the tower." Hikari summarized it all up.
"No, no… I don't want them to see me like this." Alice whispered.
"Alice… Do you like Blood?" Hikari bluntly asked, stopping on her tracks.
Alice spun around, her face flustered red. "Wh-What makes you say that?!" she spluttered, hiding her blush with her hands.
Hikari smiled and closed her left eye, a finger raised. "Hehehe! I may not be good at a lot of things…but I can tell when a girl is in love~!" she sang and began to make smooching sounds, hugging herself.
Alice hit the back of Hikari's head with her fist. "S-Shut up! And stop making that noise! It's annoying and disturbing!" she shouted.
"Ahaha! Sorry, sorry! I couldn't help myself." Hikari said, raising both her hands up in defeat. "So… if you like Blood then why don't you just tell him?" she asked, crossing her hands behind her head.
Alice stared down at her feet, "It's…complicated."
"Man… I'm glad that I'm not involved in some love relationship." Hikari said out loud and quickly turned to Alice. "Ahahaha, I didn't mean you Alice! Your relationship with Blood is a bit complicated, but I bet you two can work it out."
There was a moment a silence. Hikari spotted a nearby bench and guided Alice to rest for a while. "I guess Laura doesn't like you or any other foreigner?" the keyblade wielder asked.
Alice nodded, "…she's possessive and likes to tease me. She teases every foreigner that comes here! She…she flirts with the person we like most and she forced us to leave Wonderland forever! The other three fell for her tricks, but I didn't. I… I can't just leave my friends! They're too precious for me!" she cried, tears streaming down her cheeks. She gripped her dress tightly, her tears dropping like rain to her hand. "B-Blood likes her more… She's beautiful and has a lot of talent…" her voice dies down to a whisper.
Hikari gulped, looking away from the crying woman. She scratched the back of her neck. She felt bad for Alice and the other foreigners to deal with Laura's rotten attitude. It was mean of her to play the Role-Holders' feelings and more importantly, she made Alice cry! Alice was strong. So seeing her crying like this makes the young brunette's heart clench.
"Alice," The brunette softly called. Alice turned her head to face Hikari. Something soft was rubbed against her cheek. A white handkerchief dabbed her hot tears away gently. Alice's eyes stared into Hikari's lively blue ones. They had kindness in them as if they could take all the pain away. "Don't you worry about a single thing, Alice. You don't have to be sad or worried. You're prettier and have lots and lots of talent! Unlike me, my only talent is making tea and fighting…but from what I see, you can make everyone here at Wonderland happy! Even grumpy Julius! Now that's what I call talent!" she cheered Alice up with words.
Alice smiled, "Thank you…Hikari." She thanked, taking the handkerchief so she could wipe her tears by her own. Hikari gave another smile while tucking a loose strand behind Alice's ear. Alice giggled, "Blood have taught you a little too well, Hikari." She said.
"Eh?"
"If you were a boy, I might just have fallen for you."
"Eh?"
"Kidding, kidding." Alice continued to giggle.
"…this 'everyone in Wonderland will fall in love with you' rule… Does it count previous foreigners too?!" Hikari questioned, blinking confusedly as she leans away from Alice. "You… don't love me right?"
"Of course I love you! But not in that kind of way!" Alice argued.
"But it doesn't seem like that." A new voice said.
"ACE!" Both Alice and Hikari exclaimed in surprise when Ace suddenly pops his head between the two girls. "Don't do that! You almost gave us a heart attack!" Alice scolded, placing her hand on her chest.
Ace laughed, "Sorry Alice! I didn't mean to surprise you and your friend!" he apologized, a hand on his hip. He glanced down to Hikari—who was staring at him. The Knight blinked and leaned down, his face inches away from the brunette. "Hey Alice? Who's your new friend? He has eyes!"
Alice laughed, "That's Hikari, Ace! She looks handsome, yes?" she joked.
Hikari pushed Ace's face away from her, an annoyed look on her face. "Personal space, dude. Personal space."
"Eh? Really?! I didn't know!" Ace said, surprised. He stood straight with a hand on his chin. He leans back down, a smile was present on his lips. "So what's with the new look? Are you trying to woo girls too? You're doing pretty good might I add!" his hand patted Hikari's shoulder. He leaned closer to her, whispering something into her ear. "If you want some advice, I can give you some!" he smirked.
"It's not like that, Ace." Hikari sighed, rubbing her temples in frustration.
"Hikari got into some trouble with Blood." Alice shortly explained.
Ace tilted his head curiously. "Trouble?"
"…I owe him 500.000 G."
A/N: End of chap 7!
Special thanks to: Hari Datenshi, Iris520, ShizukaRen-Hime, DoubtReality, eclipse. Firsttears101, tum for adding this story to their favs!
Special thanks to: Alexus. Uzumaki, ShizukaRen-Hime, DoubtReality, eclipse. Firsttears101 for adding this story to their alerts!
Reviews are very appreciated! And please no flames!
R&R please!