"The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources." –Albert Einstein.
I do want to say that I am honestly surprised! is telling me I already had 8 more visitors from yesterday. Of course, many of you could be repeat visitors, but I'm still ecstatic! Please please please write a review and let me know that I'm not going crazy!
Words in italics are memories Bold Italics are narration from Tarrant himself.
Happy Readin!
Kylie the Kiwi
Tarrant Hightopp, 20 years old
"What do you want now, Tarrant?" I looked at the cat with disgust. He really was my least favorite person, but I needed something that only he could give me. I needed to not remember. Forget.
"I need you to help me."
"Well, besides the obvious." He disappeared and reappeared behind me. Bloody cat can never stay in one place. He was no doubt still plotting on how to steal my precious hat. I hated it when he did that, you know. It was a terrible habit of his.
"I want to forget that I lo- care for Mirana. But I don't want to forget who she is." He didn't ask any questions. He didn't look shocked either. He merely touched my forehead and mumbled something about Absolem. I waited for a moment. And then another. And another. Nothing happened.
And suddenly, I didn't remember why I was there in the first place! It had something to do with the White Queen, certainly. But what of? Why was Chess looking at me like he was expecting an answer for something? Why was I in the middle of Tulgey Wood when I could be seeing my friends? Am I mad?
"What am I doing, Chessur?" He grinned like he does and disintegrated without a word.
"Slurvish bloody git of a cat. Gollymoggerslumdingschwarn." I kept mumbling that as I made my way to my tea table. There, at the end sat the exact cat in question. In my chair, nonetheless. I simply swatted at him and sat down.
"Oh, Tarrant, I must tell you something. The Queen asked me to give you a message." SO now he decides to talk to me.
"What did she say?" I wasn't extremely curious, though. If it was really important, she would have sent Nivens.
"She said she misses you a lot." I pondered that. Why would she miss me at all? We never had much to do with each other, did we? I thought back and found there were little black spots in my memory, blocking out certain things. I growled in frustration and flipped over my tea cup. I picked up a scone, buttered it, and threw it out into the woods. I did the same with about 5 more. What is the hatter with me?
"Tell her I said this: How can I possibly miss you? Why, I haven't even noticed the Time passing, which it hasn't you know." He left us, probably on his way to Marmoreal. The rest of my friends were staring at me with their eyes wide and mouths opened.
"Are yeh okay, 'atter?" I scrunched my eyebrows together in thought.
"I believe it's just the madness. I'll be fine." I sat down and got lost in my thoughts.
Things that begin with the letter 'M': Marvelous, more, muchness, marriage, magnificent, merry, malice, Mallymkin, McTwisp, mustard, March, monarch, May, mustache, Monday, mussels, Marmoreal, modesty, moisturizer, matter, molasses, mold, moles, money, monkey, Mirana, music.
Wait. Who the heck is Mirana? It sounds familiar, but I don't know a 'Mirana'. Do I? No, no, that would be terrible! For heavens sake, what kind of name is Mirana? Oh dear, this madness is coming on much faster than I thought.
Years passed with nothing great in particular. I sank farther into madness very quickly. I remembered nothing of my childhood.
"Hatter, I need you to come with me." I followed Mallymkin for hours, walking through the woods and hiking up mountains. It took so long. We stopped only for a little tea and food.
Eventually, we made it to Marmoreal and went inside. The castle was blindingly white and clean. It made me feel crazy. My eyes went yellow, and I felt Mally hop on my shoulder and touch my cheek. That was the only thing that ever calmed me- someone touching my cheek.
"Chess, please! Make me forget!" I heard a strangely familiar, sing-song, female voice coming from down the hall. About a half hour later, we got there, nearly panting. That hall was much farther than it seemed. I was very tired.
"Majesty, here is your hatter. Tarrant Hightopp." I looked at Mally and Chess in confusion. Since when was I a hatter? Since now I suppose. I gulped and looked at my queen. She was beautiful.
Her skin was pale white, much more than mine if it was possible. Her eyes were a dark brown, but growing lighter by the second. Her hair was white as well as her dress. This lead me to believe she was the White Queen. I continued to gape at her, as she stared at me in seeming frustration. I wanted desperately to touch that skin, that flawless skin. I wanted to press my body to hers and make her mine. I wanted to just make skin contact.
And all of a sudden, It felt like I wasn't in my own body.
"Come one, Tarrant! See if you can catch me!" The teenage, white haired girl ran quickly through the gardens with my hat on her head.
"No fair, Mirana! You're much too fast!" She giggled and ran, or danced, backwards.
"You'll have to come and get this," she pointed to my hat, "yourself." She then tripped over a log, which I later burned down for hurting her.
"Are you okay?" I rushed over to her and helped her up, grabbing my hat off her head. I couldn't help but notice that she was favoring one foot over the other. She sat on the very log that tripped her and pulled her skirts up to her knees. Her shoes were nowhere to be found.
I sat on a rock across from her and said, "Come, let me have a look." She lifted her left foot slowly and let me look at it. I brushed the dirt off it and set it gently on the ground.
"That one seems fine, I suppose. Let me see the other." She lifted her right foot even more slowly than her left. I reached out to hold it, but the second I touched her ankle, she hissed in pain. I immediately let go and cocked an eyebrow at her. I held the lower part of her leg instead and poked her ankle once, twice, three times.
"Ouch! Ugh! Tarrant, stop that!" She shrieked at me. It hurt my ears so bad. Man, she was loud! I very gently brushed the dirt off that one and smiled quietly to myself.
"I knew you weren't okay. I knew it! Naughty girl, not telling me." I picked her up and carried her back to the castle. "It really wasn't fair."
"All's fair in love and war, Tarrant."
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