I do not own any of Alice in Wonderland.

~outside a forest~

Alex picked herself up. She was covered in mud. 'Mother is going to kill me.' She looked around. Behind her was the hedge she had gone through and in front of her was an over grown forest. "Since when has there been a forest in the Chester's back garden?" She spoke aloud not liking the silence. Did the hedge really block the sound of her mother's voice?

"Might as well should look around. Don't want to get my head bitten off just yet." She walked into the forest.

She didn't even take five steps before she tripped and fell into a puddle of mud. She picked herself up and looked at where she had walked, nothing was there. She heard a laugh come from beside her.

"Who's there?! Show yourself!" Alex didn't like tricks being played on her.

"What fun would that be?" Alex turned to find a boy with purple hair and cat ears lying on a tree branch.

"What are you suppose to be? Some sort of...weird cat-person?" Alex looked at the odd boy-animal.

"Maybe." The boy rolled backwards and disappeared.

Alex looked around to try and find the boy, but couldn't see him. "Can you tell me where I am?" Alex hoped the boy hadn't left.

"You're in Wonderland my dear." Alex jumped away from the boy that now stood behind her. "Who might you be?" The boy was floating in the air upside down.

Alex looked at the strange boy. 'I must have hit my head on something.' The boy continued to stare at her with a wide mouthed grin. "It's Alex."

"Alice, did you say?" The cats eyes widened with surprise.

"No Alex. As in Alexis, but call me Alex." She couldn't even remember how often people mistook her name for her sister's nickname.

"That's a relief. I'm Chez." He dramatically wiped his brow then extended his hand to the annoyed girl. "How did you get here? Alice locked the door and brought the key with her. So you can't have come through the door."

"I came through the-" Alex had turned to point to the hedge wall, but found it gone and a valley in its place. "There was a hedge right there! How am I going to get home?!"

"I guess I could take you to the Hatter and the Hare. But you may want to wash up first. Your dreadfully covered in mud." Chez smiled at the girl, she was odd, but fun.

"I wonder who's fault that is?" Alex glared at the cat, she was positive he was the one that had tripped her. "And how would you propose I clean up? I don't see a bathroom anywhere."

"This way." Chez led the girl to a large overhanging flower. "Stand under this."

Alice looked up at the flower skeptically, but she stood under it and glared at the cat. "Now what?"

"Stand still, and try not to lose your footing, or get any in your mouth." Chez climbed the branch and flicked the bud of the plant. It gurgled before spilling its content on the girl.

Alex held back her scream as the strange pink water washed over her. It was sticky and gel like, but liquid. When the pink stuff stopped falling onto her, she looked down at herself. Her dress was free of mud and it was dry. "Wow. That stuff is amazing! Thanks Chez!"

"No problem. Shall we head off. It's not safe this close to the Red Queen's territory. She doesn't like trespassers." Chez began to pull her away towards the denser part of the woods. "So how did you get here?"

"I went through a hedge." Alex examined the boy more, he had a tail to go with his ears as well. "Were you born with ears and a tail?" She couldn't help her curiosity.

Chez smiled at her. "Were you born with your eyes?"

*THUD*

Both stopped walking and looked behind them. Lying in the grass, in a pool of sunlight, was a girl. It looked like a girl, black flats with white stockings, a blue dress, but something was off. There was no head to be seen.

"What is that?" Alex waited for an answer, but none came. "Chez?" She looked around, but the cat-boy was no where to be seen.

Alex began to panic a bit, she could here foot steps approaching. She backed up till her back hit a tree.

*CLANG*

She caught a flash of something as it fell and stuck in the ground. It was a sword. She looked around, hoping no one had seen her, till she caught a flash again. She looked towards the sword, but it wasn't in the ground anymore, it was stabbing her through her heart. "Wha ... what ... what ... is ... going ... on ..." Alex blacked out as she watched the sword sink further into her chest.

Alex awoke to the sound of mumbling. She opened her eyes to find her self lying on the ground with a pile of leaves covering her. Her back was against the tree, or rather, inside the tree. 'Must have fallen into a hollow.' She caught sight of someone walking. A man, a man with bright orange hair and a hat, a very nice hat.

"She said she would meet me here, but she isn't here... Where could she be?... What is taking her so long?..." Alex continued to listen to him speak. "Maybe something happened?... Maybe she got caught?... What if the Queen has her?..."

Alex was pulled away from the conversation, something was crawling up her back. It tickled and sent a chill down her spine at the same time. She held still, but once it got to her neck, she freaked out. "Kya! GET IT OFF, GET IT OFF, GET IT OFF!" She flailed her arm trying to get whatever was crawling on her arm off.

She tripped while flailing around, but she didn't fall on the ground. She did fall, but someone caught her. She looked up into a pair of green eyes. It was the man that was walking around.

"Hello there. Who might you be?" Alex couldn't say a word, she was still in shock from the trip, she usually never tripped and she already had, twice. She squirmed again as the crawling thing climbed out of her sleeve. "Oh, hello there Absolem. Have you seen Alice?"

"Why would I keep track of that snivelling girl? She can take care of herself, can she not? She has the Vorpal sword, does she not?" Alex stared at the caterpillar, it was talking. "What are you staring at, girl?" Absolem looked at her with discontent. "Who are you?"

Alex snapped out of her daze and held her hand out to a stack of mushrooms nearby, she wanted the talking caterpillar off of her arm. "I'm Alex. And why am I talking to a caterpillar, how is a caterpillar speaking?!"

"Seems we have another outsider. Blood, why don't you take her to the White Queen?" Absolem turned away from them and picked up his steam pipe. He didn't like being disturbed, and having a large girl fall near him was most certainly an interruption.

"Alice, you said?" Alex turned to the man named Blood. Blood smiled at her, he was dreading what the White Queen would say.

"No, Alex. It's short for Alexis, but I prefer Alex." Alex rolled her eyes as she stop and dusted herself off. She pressed a hand over her heart remembering what had happened before she blacked out, no wound.

"Is something wrong?" Blood looked at her curiously, he was relieved her name wasn't Alice, it would make things much simpler.

"No, I'm fine. Where you waiting for someone?" Alex looked to where the girl's body had previously been. All that remained, was a pool of dried blood.

"Yes, but it looks like she isn't showing up. Are you alone here? It's dangerous to be in the Red Queen's territory. She doesn't like trespassers." Blood easily found the hidden path that leads back to Marmoreal.

"No. I was traveling with this curious boy. He had cat ears and a tail. He also had purple hair." Alex followed Blood closely, she didn't want to lose him.

"Oh, Chez. He has an evaporating skill. He probably disappeared as soon as trouble showed up. What trouble did you run into?" Blood was glad they were finally out of the forest, the hidden path was the best shortcut he ever found.

"It looked like a hunt of sorts. Thumping feet, the sound of scraping metal, usual hunt sounds." Alex was surprised at how quickly they had gotten out of the forest. "Where are we going?"

"Marmoreal, the White Queen's palace. The Red can't get to us there. But if you say there was a hunt. We may want to move a bit faster." Blood looked around before breaking into a sprint, he did not want to get caught.

Alex kept up with Blood easily, she loved running. They reached a forest and slowed once the forest turned pale. "Are the trees dying? I've never seen them so pale." Alex rain her hand through the leaves, they were soft.

"No, it just says we are now in the White Queen's domain." Blood smiled at her, she seemed very curious and childlike. She was interesting. "We should keep moving. Still have ways to go. Are you your usual size or did you have...something?"

Alex followed with a frown on her face. "Of course I am my usual size. What would make it so I wasn't?" She wished she had her shoes, but didn't dwell on it. The grass was soft and warm. She couldn't keep the smile off of her face.

"Oh there are many things. Even certain plants." Blood kept walking till they reached the edge of the forest. "You may get a bit of hostility because you are wearing red. So don't be offended."

Alex smirked as she followed him out of the forest. "Don't worry, I'm used to being treated like an outcast." She walked beside him and didn't even blink when the men at the gates pointed their swords at her throat.

"Halt! Who goes there?" The guards eyed the girl before them carefully. People in red usually worked for the Red Queen. "Is she a prisoner?"

"No, no. She is a lost person. A wandering traveler. A free spirit. An outsider seeking the inside. A-" Blood stopped himself before he went to far. "Sorry. I'm taking her to see the a White Queen. Don't worry she is harmless." Blood placed an arm around Alex's shoulder and walked her through the gate. "I'd say that went pretty well."

"Well indeed." Alex smiled at him as they walked towards the front door of the palace. "Are we allowed to just walk in?"

"Oh, yes, yes. Don't worry, she isn't one to take off your head." Blood couldn't help but let out a laugh. "Here we go."

Alex followed Blood into the palace. She was surprised how white the palace was, it hurt her eyes a bit. She moved her eyes to the front of the room. In a white throne sat a woman. Her hair was nearly white, her dress pure white, and her lips were as black as night.

Alex bowed with Blood once they reached the front of the room.

"Who is this?" The White Queen looked at the girl with surprise.

Blood stood up slowly and smiled at the queen. Now started the hard part. "This is Alex." He accented the 'x' sound so as not to cause confusion. "I found her while waiting for Alice. But Aice did not appear."

"Alex you say." The White Queen turned her eyes back towards the girl. She met her red eyes and cringed a bit. "Bring forth the Legend Scroll."

Alex frowned wondering what the Queen was asking for. She frowned even more when a dodo bird walked towards the Queen with a small scroll in hand.

"What is on the scroll about Alex? She isn't an Alice." Blood knew what the Queen was checking. She had told Alice about the legend when she had chosen to stay in Wonderland.

The White Queen in rolled the scroll and looked for Alex's name. She found it at the bottom of the list. Her name was written in red followed a title. She frowned at the title and closed the scroll. "Throw her out."

"What?" Blood looked at the Queen curiously. She had never thrown anyone out of her palace.

"I said, 'Throw. Her. Out.' She is the reason Alice has not returned. She killed Alice." The White Queen tried to keep a glare off of her face. She just barely kept it off. "She was like a daughter to me. And I will not have her killer hiding in my court."

Alex didn't know how to react. She looked from the Queen to Blood. The Queen seemed to be trying to stay calm, and Blood seemed hurt. She took a step back as guards moved towards her. "I didn't kill anyone! I never have!"

"You didn't have to. There can only be one Alice." The White Queen held up the scroll in her hands. "This scroll holds the names of every 'Alice' that has exist and will ever exist. When a new Alice arrives, the previous must die. Your name is here, at the bottom of the list. You are the 'Final Alice'. And you will kill us all." The White Queen held back her anger, but just barely. "Get out of my court."

Alex stared at the Queen with disbelief. Her name wasn't Alice. So why was her name on the list? She caught sight of the same disbelief on Blood's face. She saw the disbelief turn to horror and pain.

"GO!" The White Queen was losing her patience. She wanted the girl out of her court.

Alex turned away from the White Queen, she seemed to be almost turning red. She walked back towards the door. Her feet made a light sound as she walked across the cold marble. She didn't bother to shut the door. 'She can do it her damned self.'

Alex walked into the forest and broke into a run once she lost sight of the palace behind her. She didn't stop till she got out of the pale excuse for a forest.

She loved the vibrant colours, they seemed more alive than the pale leaves. The vibrant colours called for life. They called for her to stay with them. Alex found herself enchanted by them. They gave her life, life that she seemed to have forgotten she had. "I don't think I can go back. I'm sure mom will survive just fine without me. And Mrs. Thompson would be very pleased that Jonathan doesn't have to see me...Jonathan." Alex pressed a hand to her heart, she would miss him. But she had to get over him, she didn't belong there, she never did.

Please leave a comment or a question. Sorry for taking so long to add this chapter. I haven't had a chance to work on this. Other stories were clogging up my brain. It might be a while till the next chapter goes up, but don't worry. I will not be abandoning this story.