Rated T for fluff, will be M eventually
Wow, you guys really like this, huh? Over 40 of you have added it to your fave/alert lists! Well, so far I've been keeping up with my chapter-a-day goal, so here's chapter 5! It's a bit longer, but there's a lot going on here. I hope it's still interesting. More dialogue, my least fave thing to write... PLEASE let me know how I'm doing with it? Quick note on time: this chapter takes place (in Otherland anyway) almost a year after the movie, prolly like 8 or 9 months or so. 1st chapter takes place the day of the engagement party, 2nd is a month later, 3rd is a month after that, and 4th is 5 or so months after that, and this is one or two months after that. Got it? lol
As always, please read and REVIEW!!! I love reviews like Tarrant loves tea, or Miranda loves white, or Nivens loves punctuality!
A bump in the road startled Alice awake. Looking around, she saw that she was in a carriage. She beamed as she looked out the window, just as the carriage passed the front gate to the Kingsleigh Manor. At long last, she was home. Or near enough, at least. She tapped her foot impatiently as she drew closer and closer to the building, practically leaping out the moment they stopped. She was met by her mother, sister, and infant nephew.
"Alice!" the two women chorused, embracing her in turn. She leaned down to gently kiss the baby's forehead.
"So, this is little Phillip? Hello, handsome. You are a charming fellow." The group shared a laugh, before heading inside. "Where is Lowell?" Alice asked, noting his presence with what she was sure was too much pleasure.
"Oh, he's away on business again," Margaret sighed. "Honestly, he's away so often, I wonder if he sometimes forgets he has a family to come home to!" Margaret laughed, meaning it as a joke, but Alice eyed her, suspiciously. Before she could say a word, her sister caught her eye, and something told Alice her sister wasn't completely ignorant of her husband's "business." This irritated Alice considerably, but she decided to put it out of her mind for the time being.
"Alice," her mother stated, her voice keeping its usual polite but stern tone, "We have all been invited to Ascot Manor for the weekend. They are having a party tonight, to celebrate the company's success." Alice nodded; Lord Ascot had mentioned this as they had parted ways at the docks. Just then, Phillip began to cry.
"Oh dear, I believe it's time for his nap," Margaret said apologetically. "If you'll excuse me." She turned around and headed for the nursery, leaving Alice alone with her mother. The two smiled at each other, before walking on. Helen began fussing with Alice's hair, and she resisted the urge to shoo her hand away.
"It should be a grand party this evening. I could help you dress, if you'd like." Alice didn't think she would like, but her mother was looking at her pleadingly, and she had missed her, and so she nodded.
"Thank you mother. I have missed you," she said after a minute, embracing the woman again. The two hugged briefly, before Helen pulled away.
"Well then, I believe I could do with a spot of tea, would you care to join me?" Alice smiled, her eyes becoming unfocused for a moment, thinking of tea parties past. Her mother eyed her warily.
"Are you quite alright, dear? Perhaps you would rather retire for a while." Alice shook her head lightly to clear it, focusing on her mother again.
"What? Er, yes, I suppose I am a bit tired. I fell asleep in the carriage, but the bumps made it difficult to rest properly." Helen nodded, still suspicious.
"Well then, my dear, your room has been prepared. I shall come to you at four, to help you dress. Until then." The two shared a last brief hug, before parting ways. Alice watched her mother float down the hallway, and sighed heavily, turning towards her room. When she opened the door she felt a wave of comfort wash over her; it felt like forever since she'd been here, and the familiarity was overwhelmingly pleasing. She shut the door behind her and threw herself on the bed, burying her head beneath the many pillows. She lay there for some time, breathing in the scent of the clean linens. She smelled roses as well, and turning around, saw a large vase filled with blooms sitting atop her dresser. She got up and walked over, touching the velvety petals, wishing they could speak. But then she realized that these roses were cut, and would be unable to speak even in Underland; the thought troubled her, and so she shook her head to rid herself of it.
She walked to her closet and opened it, looking at the mass of satin and lace in various pastel shades. After much deliberation, she pulled out a simple light blue gown, with a bodice made to look more like a man's jacket than a woman's dress. She'd had it made special in China, out of a beautiful silk fabric she'd found. It was a pale sky blue, with accents of darker blue ribbon, and icy blue lace. It buttoned up the front, before flaring out at the neckline, rising to the standing collar. It had a bustle in the back, and a skirt that looked straight when motionless, but had hidden panels that billowed out when the wearer twirled. It was deceivingly simple while standing, but made for dancing.
Alice hung the dress on the front of her armoir, admiring it for a moment, before lying down again. She was beginning to feel sleepy, and decided it would be best to rest for a while, before dealing with her mother. She wasn't looking forward to the nights proceedings, never having been the type to enjoy balls and such. Or perhaps it was just the company. I'm quite sure a ball in Underland would be lovely. Dining in the White Queen's palace, conversing with March and Mallymkun, dancing with... my hatter... Alice thought sleepily. A smile played on her lips as her barely open, unfocused eyes gazed in the direction of her dress. All it needs now is a hat...
Days had passed, and the Hatter had completely forgotten his nasty dream. He was sitting at the table having tea, of course, with Thackary, Mally, and even Chessur. They were discussing this and that, and these and those, when Nivens came hopping down the path. They all greeted him with hearty hellos, when he jumped up onto the table, pulling a stack of envelopes from his waistcoat.
"Ah, you're all here, very good. These are for you," he said, handing an envelope to each of them in turn. He waited patiently while they opened the envelopes, some more neatly than others (Nivens winced as Thackary nearly tore his in half). When he saw that they were reading the cards the envelopes had previously held, he cleared his throat, and recited from memory.
"Dear Sir or Madam, you are hereby cordially invited to the White Palace in Mamoreal, to join Her Majesty Miranda of Crims, the White Queen of Underland, for a ball in celebration of Her Majesty's un-birthday. Said ball is to be held tonight, dinner beginning promptly at six, dancing and merriment to follow." Nivens looked up to see an audience of bored and/or amused faces, having already read in two seconds what took him two minutes to say. They all verbalized their RSVP's in the affirmative, going back to their tea, not even watching as Nivens nodded curtly and headed back. Balls were a regular occasion, and while not against them, none of the party felt they warranted any more excitement than if they had received an invite to a tea party by the Mad Hatter. Except Hatter, of course, who would have found it quite odd to receive an invitation to himself from himself, but still...
"If you will excuse me, I must finish a hat or three I've been working on," Tarrant said, standing up suddenly. The others looked at him for a moment, as he turned and went inside without waiting for a response.
Perhaps I should try to make myself a bit more presentable than normal, he thought to himself. Who knows, I could find my true love at the ball, just like in that story Mally was telling us... What was the name of it? Ash-ley? Soot-rina? Hm, well, unimportant. What is important is looking my best. Which I suppose I always do, but perhaps tonight I should try to look better than my usual best, if that is possible. Can one have more than one best? I suppose so, for I have a best hat, but I also have a best jacket, and best shoes. But there's only one of me... Tarrant was suddenly startled by his own thoughts. The phrase "only one of me" reminded him of the nasty dream he'd had, and he felt slightly uneasy. The feeling quickly passed, however, and Hatter was distracted by a teacup crashing through his window, knocking several hats off his workbench. He felt the rage take over for a minute, and he began shouting obscenities through the broken window, until Mallymkun's tiny voice called his name, bringing him back to himself.
"Thank you. I'm Fine," he called down, before turning to pick up all the hats. One of them was the hat he'd made for Alice; he held it to his chest for a moment, eyes closed. Then he got a mad idea. He looked around for an empty hat box, and once finding one the proper size, he placed the Alice-hat inside. After staring for a moment, he quickly scribbled her name on a tag, and attached it to the top of the hat box. Not sure why he had done that, but pleased nonetheless, he placed it on a chair, and set to work on a new hat for the White Queen. Surely she would want a new hat for such a formal occasion.
Alice sighed heavily. Or rather, as heavily as she could while wearing a corset; her mother had threatened to lock her in her room unless she wore one. I still say a corset is like a codfish, she thought to herself. The night was passing far too slowly for her liking. She had no one to talk to, as the Chatterly twins were, Like Margaret, home with children to care for, and she didn't really know anyone else there. She had danced with a few of the gentlemen, more to please her mother than out of a real desire. She was tired of waltzes and quadrilles, and the same boring music that made her sleepy. She longed to hear the music of Underland, and watch her Hatter Fudderwacken again.
Alice saw her mother approaching, a stern look on her face, and inwardly groaned. No doubt she's going to scold me for not being on the dance floor with some dim-witted boy. Sure enough, Helen Kingsleigh immediately pulled her aside.
"Would you please tell me why you have turned down the last six gentlemen who asked you to dance?" Alice rolled her eyes, her mother not giving her a chance to answer. "Alice, you know you're not going to get many opportunities like this, you should be taking advantage of the time you have." Alice turned to her mother, confused.
"What do you mean, 'opportunities'? Opportunities for what?"
"For meeting a suitable man, what else?" Helen answered, pulling her daughter farther out of earshot of anyone nearby. Alice wrenched her arm from her mother's grip.
"And who says I want to meet a man, suitable or otherwise?" Alice answered, her voice raising slightly. Ms. Kingsleigh looked around, worried, before turning to her daughter, a tired look on her face.
"Alice. You're twenty years old; you'll be twenty-one soon. Now, I understand you've felt you had to go off and have one last adventure, but really, don't you think it's time you grew up?" Alice only stared, shocked that after all that had happened, her own mother still didn't understand her.
"But... Father..." she stammered, trying to come up with a shattering defense, but coming up empty. Her mother's eyes closed for the briefest of moments, barely more than a blink, before looking to her daughter once more. She tried to soften her voice, but it came out strained.
"Your father would be proud of what you have done. But you are his daughter, not his son. How do you think he would feel to see you like this, traipsing around in boy's clothing? I daresay, if he were still living, the embarrassment would surely kill him." Alice took a step back, hurt more than she thought possible. Surely her father wouldn't have wanted her to be anything other than herself, would he? No. Surely not. And yet here was her own mother, ashamed of her, trying to marry her off and end her adventures forever. Alice's eyes began to mist over. She knew now that she could never fit in here; she'd always known, she supposed, but this was the final proof, if she ever needed any. She backed away from her mother slowly, before turning tail and running, ignoring her mother's voice calling her name.
Trying to hold back her tears, she quickly made her way to the room Lord Ascot had set up for her. She'd had one trunk of clothes sent here, for when she and her mother stayed over, and she ran to it now, kneeling before it. She dug through the contents, her fingers finding three crisp envelopes. She clutched them to her chest for a moment, before leaving them prominently on the vanity, where she knew they'd be found. She took one last look at the room, before tearing her eyes away. She made her way outside as quickly as she could, avoiding the ballroom as much as possible. She thanked her lucky stars that no one had seen her as she made her way through the garden to the hedge maze. Even though it had been nearly a year, she easily found her way to the old tree, where thankfully, the rabbit hole waited.
Alice stared down into the blackness. She let a few tears fall as she looked back towards the house, before smiling sadly.
"Fairfarren, all," she whispered, before closing her eyes and jumping down into the hole.