Chapter 16! I am really unhappy right now. Since we got a bran new computer tower thing, all my previously written files where wiped out so I have none of my old documents, including some of the notes on how I wanted to end this fiction! Not to worry though, I'm sure I can do it from memory. Please, enjoy!

"Alice?" Hatter asked as she walked through the foyer of the manor. Their end was still barley inhabited, so he was the only person heir except for the few random maids or waiters who would appear to them, asking if they needed the floors to be washed or to bring them anything.

He was sitting on the grand stairwell, a book in his hands and his brow furrowed; why he was there Alice wasn't sure. Did he want to talk about what had happened last night? Alice didn't, she'd been through enough secrets, enough lies. She just wanted to go to her bedroom, her aunt's bedroom, and shut the door and the rest of the world behind it.

"Alice?" Hatter repeated as she mounted the stairs, walking past him completely and biting her lip. She didn't want to, but she knew if she even attempted to speak she might break down crying again. There had been a few times that she'd almost broken down on the ride back with Lord Ascot, but thankfully she'd managed to keep her tears inside. All the silent tears she'd sobbed in the hallway of the asylum trapped shut by her own sheer will power, or maybe she was just to numb to feel it anymore. Her aunt was truly mad, her mother was still asleep, her job was going to be given to Stayne and the night before, she'd gone through so many emotional twists and turns, she didn't know what was real or what wasn't anymore.

"Alice, what's wrong?" Hatter's persistent voice pulled her suddenly back to the present, and away from her worrying thoughts. She was standing in front of her door that was still locked like she'd left it this morning. She reached into the pocket of her coat which she'd denied leaving in the front of the house. "Why aren't you talking to me? And what happened to you this morning? Did Stayne do something to you? You have to tell me what happened. If he did anything to you, I swear I'll-"

"Be quiet, Hatter." Alice whispered.

"What?" Hater asked, his voice cut between strained and confused.

"I said, be quiet." Alice told him, placing the key in the lock quickly and twisting it sharply to the right. It swung open slightly and she pushed it the rest of the way in, taking the key out of the lock on her way and walking inside, leaving the Hatter alone in the hall. She pulled off her jacket and hung it in the small closet with some of her other clothing while the Hatter finally came up behind her.

"Alice, what happened today?" He demanded.

Alice took a deep breath and faced him. "I saw my aunt Imogene today. She told me a story, and then Stayne came with an orderly and grabbed her. He pulled me out into the hallway and told me that my aunt had a knife and was going to kill me, but he saw her before she could. He also told me I was going to end up like her because I was no stronger then she was."

But instead of saying all that, the words died on her lips and instead she just said one question she would have done anything to take it back so she wouldn't get the answer. "Why did you do that last night?"

Hatter raised a single eye brow. "Do what, exactly?"

"You know exactly what!" Alice practically screamed, going from numb and weary to furious in less than a few seconds. Every feeling she'd been trying to hold down came back up and she wanted to hurt Hatter with every word like he had the night before. "Coming into my room and kissing me? Telling me that I was going to end up just like my aunt in an asylum and-and-"

"What are you talking about?" Hatter asked. "I thought…I mean, you know-"

"I'm talking about you!" Alice screamed, taking a step forward which resulted in Hatter taking on step back. "I'm talking about what you did to me last night. You kissed me and you told me that I was just like her. That I didn't belonged here and since we were both the same I was nothing better than her. I was just a mad, foolish woman who will be in that same asylum she's in."

"Alice, I would never-" Hatter tried to say but she cut him off.

"You would!" Alice snapped. "You would and you know it. Once Irisa came back, you didn't care what happened to me. You told me you wished I'd never even come back to Underland! You hurt me so many times and I never…" Alice took a step back and turned away, her hands forming fists at her sides. "I never could hate you."

"I was angry, Alice." Hatter whispered, and Alice stayed where she was and after a long paused he spoke again. "If you think all of that, then why did you ask me to come with you?"

Alice shook her head, her eyes starting to over flow with tears. She loved him, that's why. No matter what he could do, what he could say or who he was with, she always would. No matter how many times she could even deny it, or ignore them, the feelings never got any less real. And he'd been the one to call her oblivious?

Alice shook her head, tears running faster down her cheeks while she stayed silent.

"Alice…" Hatter hesitated, and Alice shut her eyes.

"Just go," The words seemed to come from someone else's mouth, but they were said in her voice. And following her words, he sighed behind her and her bedroom door shut and she was alone.

Alice clasped a hand to her mouth and choked out a muffled sob. Why? She thought bitterly. Why is this happening?

Even though she already knew the answer it still filled her with hate, hot and quick. Stayne, that's why. Why did she even have to meet him? If she could have just gone to Marmoreal, maybe then…

No, Alice thought to herself. No, he would have still hated me. And would have stilled tried to get his revenge. No matter which way she thought she could have prevented this, it all came back down to the fact that this all happened because she fell down the rabbit hole.

"Why did I even have to fall down that stupid hole?" Alice asked out loud, trying to brush away tears. "I wish I'd never even heard about it!"

Suddenly, so suddenly Alice didn't even know what she as doing until she was already doing it, Alice was grabbing things and breaking them. She needed to do something. Anything then just standing there, lost and confused and numb. She needed to take action, any action. Alice was grabbing things and tossing them to the floor. Picture frames smashing to the floor in a rain of glass, books falling forlornly to the ground, and Alice crying the entire time. And somewhere far away, Alice thought dimly, this must be like Hatter's mad fits.

Finally, Alice was holding a picture of Aunt Imogene standing against the tree. Maybe that's how she felt now. Oblivious, happy, totally unaware of anything that was happening around her.

'This….this is your fault," Alice whispered to the picture and squinting through tears threw the picture away, landing against the wall with a muffled thud.

Alice perked up. She'd thrown thing at the wall before but they'd never made that sound. She stood up, and walked over to where the picture had struck the wall. It lay on her bed, only slightly broken, a small crack in the glass. She looked up and saw that there was a small mark on the usual basic gray wall. Alice lifted her finger to the mark, and pressed slightly and was shocked to reveal that a whole section of the wall fell back.

Alice gasped, but before she could stand and run to tell someone, something caught her eye. Behind the wall was a small room, carved out into the wall. It was light a drawer, so to speak. And right in the middle was a book, wrapped in dark red leather.

Well, anyone else surprised slightly? Aunt Imogene, are you really crazy, or just misunderstood, maybe this will help you make your decision! Review pretty please?