The best part about this story is that I actually have a lay out to follow so I'm not randomizing everything as I go along hehehe

I still have so many other WIPs to complete and post up, haha. It's been a busy weekend.

I also feel so weird about not naming my chapters… I may in the future, but for right now I'm debating on if I even should omg

-.-

"Good morning, Julius." Alice greeted politely with a smile as she walked into the man's office.

After sleeping through the night, she honestly felt so much more refreshed when she woke up. Clearly if she was able to sleep within a dream, it meant that she wasn't really dreaming and everything she had experienced was truly real, but at the same time, it was kind of impossible so she still had her doubts.

It didn't really matter… If she was dreaming or not, she just wanted to get back home where she wasn't worrying for her life. Just remembering how she hadn't been able to advance out of the Tower to meet the one man who knew how to get her home because of 'monsters' lurking around at night was really disheartening.

She still wasn't even sure about the whole monster business.

Julius glanced up from the clock that had been on his desk to give her a stare and as he did so, Alice found her memories flashing back to their first meeting the night before.

She could practically still feel the pain at her neck from the choking sensation she had gotten just from him raising a hand and moving his fingers about.

He really didn't even seem like that much of a threat from afar. He looked incredibly normal, like any other person working at their desk. Blinking her eyes and watching him more observantly in mind she couldn't help but remember how scary he had seemed when he thought she was a threat… It was really best if she stayed on his good side.

The expression he gave her was incredibly blank, she supposed it should have taken her by surprise but she couldn't find it in herself to down her own mood. Besides, it seemed like Julius wasn't a morning person in the first place.

"Good morning." His voice was as deep and serious as ever and Alice allowed her smile to light up that much more while she approached his desk with her hands behind her back.

Like last night, he was still fixing clocks and if Alice didn't know any better she would have assumed that he had stayed there all night.

Part of her wanted to question him about it, but the last thing she wanted was to seem like someone that just asked questions for the sake of hearing her own voice. It was pretty obvious that he was fixing them because it was his job… She really doubted he had a hobby to fix them.

"Thanks again for letting me sleep over. I hope I'll be able to leave by today so I won't have to intrude anymore." She gave him a kind smile while he lowered his tools, one of his eyebrows rising up inquisitively, "You're leaving for the Castle of Hearts now?"

She nodded, "Mmhm. I want to get home as soon as possible. I'm sure that my sister is probably worried sick about me by now." As an afterthought, the brunette curled a piece of her hair in her finger with a small sigh, "I'm probably going to end up missing Halloween… That sucks…"

Julius observed her knowingly, "I see. Well, make sure to be careful. The Castle of Hearts is known throughout the country as the territory infamous for housing the 'Psychos of Underland' considering the amount of elementals there."

His words didn't do much to lessen her determination while she waved at him with a grin before turning toward the exit, "I'll be fine! I'll also be back before nightfall!"

As she began making her descent down the stairs, she supposed she could have been more practical and asked him for a map of some sort to get her there faster, but then she figured if the route there was that complicated, he would have offered it to her himself.

Stepping outside for the first time through the doors, Alice found herself marveling at the scenery before her.

With a clench to her fists she took in a deep breath before shooting a hand up in the air in determination, "I won't lose!" Channeling her inner energy, she charged down the nearest path to her that led through what appeared to be a dense forest.

As she kept running, she could only think of the various ways she'd get Peter White to cooperate so she could get home.

Nothing was going to stop her!

-.-

Alice slumped her shoulders tiredly as she continued her walk ahead.

It had to have been at least two hours since she had left the Clock Tower and she was still wandering in the forest with no sight of anything around. Though, she had to admit it was partially her own fault because she had turned around at one point to try and go back in order to get a map from the telekinetic man and then her indecisive nature made her end up turning back around. When she turned around, she had a feeling she hadn't been going in the direction she had been previously and thus…

She was more than likely lost.

Moaning to herself, she ran a hand through her bang and in the process nearly pushed off her bow that was on top of her hair.

"So much for not losing…" She sighed out to herself glumly while looking down at the cerulean colored bow in her grasp.

She couldn't even find the Castle of Hearts, how was she supposed to find a way home?

At that rate, she was going to be stuck there…

The brunette frowned as her fingers clutched the accessory a bit more tightly.

No.

She wasn't going to be stuck. She refused.

"Lorina went to all the trouble of getting me this costume; I might as well get back home on Halloween to wear it for her." Alice whispered right as she placed the bow back on top of her head more.

She couldn't give up. Lorina was waiting for her back at home. No matter what, she had to make it back.

With her zeal renewed, her body straightened up once more before she began her way down the path ahead of her.

After about five minutes, distantly she could hear a bunch of noise, though it was a bit mushed together with what sounded like people's screams and what Alice could only assume to be wheels on steel.

Quickly, she was able to conclude that she was near the Amusement Park.

This wasn't the territory she wanted to be in though…

The pathway she was on diverged into a bigger one up ahead and through the trees Alice was able to see other people on the main trail.

Now attentive, the female paused her steps and walked over to one of the nearby trees as quickly as she could. Attempting to hide behind the trunk, she tried looking further ahead in the direction the people on the other path were heading towards.

Distantly she could make out what she assumed to be ticket booths.

"I guess it could have been worse…" She muttered to herself with furrowed eyebrows, "I could have ended up in the mafia territory…"

Now turning around to leave as quickly as she could, Alice found her eyes widening at the sight of what looked to be a furry pink tube dangling in front of her face.

"Wha…?" She lowly breathed out with confused eyes.

At the end of it was a golden charm that vaguely looked like a fish's skeleton, but Alice didn't have much time to see it as the thing gave a swish.

Instinctively, her gaze followed upward to detect the source of it. Her eyes came upon a branch right above her and due to its thickness, her sight was obscured.

"Psst, over here."

Blinking, her body impulsively followed the source of the voice and she turned around once again, this time when she did, her entire vision was overtaken with the sight of another person that hung their upper down from the tree branch above.

"Ah!" Alice shrieked out in surprise, her hands defensively moving in front of her while she frantically attempted to back away, but in the process her feet was caught beneath one of the tree's uprooted roots and her body was sent crashing to her butt.

Pain executed throughout her bottom and she winced while moving on of her hands to rub at her head that was now beginning to develop an ache.

"Haha, your senses are way off!"

The voice was very mischievous, so much so that Alice allowed one of her eyes to crack open so she could catch a better sight of the male.

It was a boy who didn't look anymore than a year older than her, his hair was fuchsia pink and it was brushed over the left side of his face in a bang, making his other eye completely obscure from her vision. Admittedly, his appearance on its own was pretty noticeable, but not as much as the things growing out of his body.

On top of his head, matching the same exact color as his hair were a pair of cat ears, both of which had a couple of golden piercings in them.

Alice couldn't even contain her gasp as her eyes then moved to marvel at his tail while the boy flipped himself upward to stand up on the branch.

He leaned against the bark of it and watched down at her impishly, "I thought for sure you'd hear my chains while I was following you, but you're pretty deaf."

It took her a moment to catch herself before she crossly looked up at him, "Is it really necessary to insult me?" She mumbled through gritted teeth as he now lazily slid down to take a seat on his perch.

"Didn't mean to insult you. You seemed pretty tense on your own after you had that self-motivated monologue back there." He gave a snicker at the end of his words and although she was at first puzzled at what he was talking about, it took a few seconds for it to register in her brain.

"Y-you were stalking me!?" She questioned wide eyed. The blush that threatened to appear on her cheeks was completely from embarrassment.

God, she hoped she didn't unconsciously do anything too embarrassing back there.

"Cats always creep on their prey from the shadows." He winked at her charismatically and Alice blankly watched back at him, "You don't even have to be in the shadows because you're creeping me out enough right now as it is."

It was only until after her words that the full meaning behind his sentence came to mind.

He had been following her and he just called her prey…

Had he been hunting her!?

"Why were you stalking me anyways?" She cautiously inquired with a step back.

Shapeshifters were things like werewolves… Though the guy didn't look like he was all too dangerous, it was very possible that he was carnivorous. His punk clothes with all those chains didn't exactly scream 'Don't worry, I don't eat humans.'

The idea of that gave her chills and she was very much prepared to turn around and bolt out of there.

After her words he let out a short laugh before he stood back up on his feet before he proceeded to jump down from the tree and Alice would be lying if she said she wasn't amazed at how he landed on his feet so nimbly before his stance became more erect.

"I was on my way to the Amusement Park and I heard you talking to yourself. Originally, I was just going to approach you, but then I noticed your scent…" He grinned at her and Alice found herself a bit startled by how sharp his canines appeared to be, "Since you smell so good, I decided to make my own little game and trail you from the trees until you noticed. Unfortunately, you never noticed." He stated before walking over to her.

Alice found herself frozen in place while his hand gripped a bit of her hair before he moved closer and she was capable of feeling him inhaling right near her neck, "Your scent is really good! Like nothing I've ever encountered before!"

Grunting, she took a step back while he curiously watched her, "I… I think it's because I'm a human…" Alice shakily admitted and she prayed at that moment that he wouldn't turn into a wolf and decide to eat her right then and there.

Unlike her negative thoughts, his eyes grew wide in astonishment, "A human!?" He questioned loudly and Alice nodded her head slowly.

"Whoa! That's so cool!" His grin grew wider while he took another step toward her, "My name's Boris and I am Underland's friendly, wandering, freeloading Cheshire Cat. It's nice to meet you female human who has a name but I don't know yet so I hope you tell me right after I finish this sentence."

Unable to stop herself from cracking a small giggle, Alice now found herself growing more comfortable, "My name is Alice… Alice Liddell."

"So, Alice, why were you peeking out at people? You were heading for the Amusement Park, right? It's right up ahead you know." He informed with a nod causing her to sigh.

"I was actually looking for the Castle of Hearts, but I guess I got lost along the way."

Boris' face contorted up in bewilderment, "The Castle? Why were you headed there?"

"I need to talk to Peter White." At the mere mention of his name she could feel some of her hairs stand up in irritation while her fist clenched, "God, I can't wait to punch him a good one in the nose…" She muttered beneath her breath.

"Peter White? Why would you wanna talk to that guy?" Boris questioned in pure disbelief, however, before Alice could respond his hand was grabbing at her wrist, "If you're planning on becoming cremated early, then at least spend time at the Amusement Park before your ashes are sent flying!"

Alice blinked as she suddenly found herself being pulled ahead.

When she managed to find the words in herself, she attempted to pull out of his hold, "W-what!? Wait a minute! I can't just—"

She found her words coming to an abrupt halt from the moment the two made it onto the main pathway to the Amusement Park entrance.

Her eyes were now looking at other people that were walking in the same direction and she felt nothing but panic and confusion enter her body.

None of the people had eyes.

Some visibly had animal ears, cat ears, dog ears, wolf ears, and tails to match, hell, some even had little bird wings, but not a single person had eyes.

Despite this, it was obvious that no one had trouble seeing.

Horrified, Alice's spare hand slapped over her mouth before she turned ahead to look at the back of Boris' head while they continued jogging their way to the Park entrance.

He wasn't at all disturbed by it and even he had eyes like her…

So was it possible that that was normal…?

As they made it to the gates, Alice found herself nervously moving closer to the fuchsia haired male while they skipped ahead in line to make it through.

"Welcome back, Boris!" A few of the workers exclaimed to the male that grinned at them, his grip on Alice not wavering.

They didn't have eyes either…

"We should ride a couple of roller coasters first!" Boris exclaimed after Alice politely took a map from one of the greeters.

Interacting with them up close wasn't as scary as she thought it'd be. Her eyes remained locked on the greeter that turned away from her and went to offer another map to a family that just walked in. He had wolf ears and though she knew that more than likely made him a werewolf…

The ears were kind of cute.

Wait. No. She shouldn't be thinking like that!

On full moons, that guy would turn into a monster and rip her to shreds! There was nothing cute about that!

Shaking her head clear of those thoughts, she shakily gazed down at the map in her hands of the Park's layout.

Why was she even looking at it? She really shouldn't even be here… She had to go to Peter to find out how to get home.

"Alice, Alice, Alice!"

Boris pulled at her arm easily gaining her attention curiously, "Uh… What?"

"I know exactly what to take you on first, heh. Its super fun, you'll love it. Let's get going!" He grinned, his hold on her was so solid that she could only squeak while she was moved ahead.

He didn't get ten steps before he stopped and Alice blinked her eyes,

She prepared to question what was wrong, but right as the thought came to mind another voice hit her ears.

"So that's where you've been, Boris. Haven't seen you in a while."

Alice curiously glanced around the boy ahead of her in order to see the newcomer and her eyes immediately took in the sight of an older man with his brown hair pulled into a braid that was dressed in a yellow jacket and suit, a color similar to what the workers had been wearing.

Skeptically, she allowed herself to hide behind Boris a bit while she continued to observe him cautiously.

He didn't have any animal ears or tail like all the other workers and he had eyes… So was definitely different.

"I saw you yesterday." Boris bluntly informed the man that let out a laugh, "Is that so? Feels like longer!"

Alice put a thoughtful hand to her mouth.

He didn't have wings either… If he was affiliated with Amusement Park but had no shapeshifter features, what was he?

"Oh, what's this? You have a girl with you?"

With his words, Alice found her eyes widening as Boris now stepped out of the way, leaving her at full view of the stranger ahead.

Now suddenly conscious of herself, Alice shyly gave a smile and a wave before Boris nodded his head with a grin, "Yup! She's a human! Doesn't she smell good?"

"A human!?"

Clearing her throat, she nodded his way politely, "Yes, my name is Alice. It's nice to meet you!"

His shock was very similar to Boris' and he now put a large smile on his face, "That's certainly amazing! It's been a very long time since a human's entered Underland! I suppose that explains your scent... It's very enticing and enthralling, might I add."

"Erm, thank you?"

"Way to creep her out, Old Man."

Giving Boris an agitated look, he returned her gaze to her more pleasantly, "Don't worry, that was a compliment. My name is Gowland and I'm the owner of the Amusement Park." He stated with a nod that made Alice's eyes become filled with wonder.

"Ah… You're the owner so you're a shapeshifter, right? If you don't mind me asking, what kind are you?"

Both men curiously watched at her before Gowland scratched at his stubbled chin, "Haha! It's nice that you're curious! After all, since I don't have those lame animal attributes like the others, it truly makes me seem more powerful, doesn't it!?"

His tone was arrogant and Alice tilted her head to the side, "Huh?"

Dully, Boris sent him an annoyed gaze, "Just because we have a human here doesn't mean it gives you permission to show off." He then turned to Alice with pursed lips, "The Old Man's a lycan."

"Lycan?" She instantly droned back in perplexity.

"It's a rare breed of werewolf that can transform at will instead of depending on the moon or nighttime in general." He sighed with folded arms while Gowland gave a loud laugh and slung his arm around Boris' shoulder,

"Boris is just upset that he has to carry his ridiculous cat ears all the time whether he likes it or not while I don't."

"My ears aren't ridiculous! They proudly show what species I am because I'm not ashamed unlike you, you sell out!"

"I am not a sell out!"

"Whatever you say, sell out."

"Grr… You annoying little—"

"Wow, that's really cool!" Alice intervened when it seemed as though things were beginning to pick up in terms of intensity.

Both males turned back to her and she inwardly gave a sigh of relief, "Where I'm from we don't have names for these kinds of things… If you're not a werewolf, we'll just call you a shapeshifter."

"So this whole time you've been calling me a shapeshifter in your head? That's insulting." Boris remarked with a slight pout to his lips, "For your own future reference and inner monologue, I am a werecat."

Alice took in the information with a nod, "I see, I see…"

It seemed as though they had their own system set up in terms of everything. She had to watch what she said before she offended someone because even if Boris didn't appear that insulted despite his words, if she triggered the wrong person she'd probably end up as someone's dinner.

She had to let out a sigh. Her smell wasn't helping her either.

"So Alice," Gowland now spoke with a smile, "How have you been enjoying the Amusement Park so far?"

"We literally just got here. I was going to take her on the Ripper coaster." Boris explained with a nod, easily making Gowland give Alice a friendly look, "Ah, I see. Well, regardless, I hope you enjoy your time here and you're very much welcome to stay here as long as you want!"

His offering certainly was warmer than what Julius had given her.

Waving off at him, Alice beamed, "Thank you for the offer, but I'm staying with Julius until I go home and I plan on going home really soon."

"The Clock Maker? He actually let you—"

Before Boris could finish, Gowland now let out a rather dramatic sigh as he now held a violin in his hand.

Alice watched at him in confusion while she attempted to think of where he pulled it out from and Boris appeared to be tensing up greatly, "Old Man, put the weapon of mass destruction down." He carefully voiced out causing Alice to look at him dumbly, "It's just a violin…" She whispered over to him.

"It's the instrument of the devil." Boris murmured back at her seriously.

"In my world violins are used to play music. What the heck are they used for here?"

"Same thing. It's just that the Old Man's music is used to send you to hell earlier than you would want."

"What?"

"I suppose that I should play you a song to officially welcome you to Underland! It's a new song I recently made, I hope you like it!" Gowland exclaimed loudly, catching both teens' attention. He fixed the violin in its proper position with his bow in hand to strum at the strings.

Still confused, Alice could only watch as Boris' hands shot upward to his ears.

Why was he—

SCREECH!

"A-ah!" Alice cried out painfully as both of her hands moved to cover her ears as the head reeling screeching noise made it her brain. Her whole body seemed to vibrate from the sound that continuously came while coupled with what she was barely able to make out as Gowland's singing and her brain frantically wept for escape from the pain that attacked at it.

The music was actually hurting her!

"Make it stop!" The brunette exclaimed as desperately as she could in between her moans.

If this was how God planned on having her die, he was truly a cruel and merciless being.

"For fuck's sake, Merry-Go-Round! You can't play! Stop it, damn it!" Boris hollered in a way that was barely past the volume of the violin.

Alice squinted her eyes open to look at the shapeshifter that still covered his ears, his body tensed and trembling, no doubt from the same agony Alice was experiencing.

Even though he hadn't breached the barrier of the music, Gowland still heard him and he paused from his playing, something that Alice could have cried so many tears of happiness from while she dropped to her knees on the floor in relief.

Her ears were still incredibly sensitive but she was just happy that the torture was over.

"What did you just call me?"

Alice found her concern with her own well being momentarily gone at the words that were coldly spoken by the still standing older man ahead of the both of them.

Watching at how fiercely his demeanor had changed actually made her a bit afraid.

He looked so scary…

Boris didn't appear the least bit intimidated while he glared at him, "You need to stop fucking with that thing! It's literally the embodiment of all the pain and suffering in this damn country!"

"You called me Merry-Go-Round just now, didn't you, Boris?"

"Um…" Alice barely managed to voice out as Gowland's body began to visibly quiver.

At first the sight was hardly noticeable but gradually, it started to intensify and Alice felt her inner instincts beginning to pick up while she fearfully watched him.

Without warning, Boris grabbed her by one of her wrists and pulled her up to her feet. Still a bit slow with how quick he was moving, Alice clumsily got up and began running with the male that was now sprinting away from the Amusement Park owner swiftly.

Finding her voice, she glanced back over her shoulder at the man that still stood shaking violently now, "I-Is he okay!?" She worriedly asked before turning back ahead to the boy that held her.

Boris let out a loud cackle, his steps not slowing as he turned a sharp corner, "Of course he is! But if we stick around, we won't be!"

"Is he having a seizure or—"

An ear piercing roar rippled throughout the air and Alice's teal eyes grew.

The sound managed to weave its way to her heart and she felt her blood chill at how loud and close the sound seemed to be.

It had come from behind them… Practically as though it came from the same spot she and Boris had been in with Gowland only a couple moments ago.

"Nah, he just has anger issues." Boris snickered as they finally came to a stop.

Fearfully, Alice watched up at him, her breathing still heavy from the amount of running they did, "He transformed into a lycan… Didn't he?" She reluctantly questioned causing the boy to nod his head.

That was actually really scary even though she hadn't witnessed it, she could only imagine what it would have looked like to view it all.

She was grateful for not looking back again when she had the chance while they were running… Watching someone turn into a lycan didn't exactly sound pleasing on the eyes…

Not only that, but if Boris hadn't grabbed her and ran with her, she would have been stuck there with an angry shapeshifter and probably mauled.

"He's always so prideful about being able to transform day or night. Feh, he's so full of himself when all it takes is one little name to get him riled up and transforming." Boris distastefully stated with pursed lips.

Alice dully watched him, "You two don't get along much, do you?"

"Eh? We actually do. He lets me live here after all. It's just that the only way to get him to stop playing that demon's tool is to piss him off until he transforms." He fitted his hands in his pockets, a grin coming to his face, "Pissing him off is way too easy."

"He's not going to hunt you down while he's transformed, is he?"

"Nah. But even if he did, he'd never catch me, that's for sure." Boris nonchalantly remarked and though Alice still had some anxiety in her system with the idea of a pissed off lycan being somewhere in the park after them, the Cheshire Cat gripped her shoulders, "Anyways, let's go ride something!"

Right as he began to walk forward, two new voices called over to them.

"Boris! Brother, look there he is!"

"Finally! We've been looking everywhere! Boris!"

Boris' steps stopped now and both he and Alice moved their heads in the direction of the calls.

Alice watched on curiously as two young boys now waved over at them hugely, their steps bringing them close to the pair quicker than Alice anticipated.

Dimly, she reminded herself that she was the only human there as the two, now seen distinguishable as twins due to their strikingly similar looks, now bounded up toward Boris with grins on their faces.

"We're here to discuss territory negotiations!"

"Yeah, but we managed to sneak away from Boss and the stupid rabbit, so let's go ride stuff!"

"Territory negotiations again?" Boris questioned lazily, now releasing Alice to approach them, "Didn't you guys do them just the other day?"

"We did," The blue eyed one began, "But it was a full moon so you know that didn't end well." The red suited one finished with a laugh.

Boris nodded knowingly, "I guess that's why you decided to reschedule it to the morning? I'm surprised. I never thought you guys could wake up this early."

Alice awkwardly stood behind him, her eyes observantly eyeing both of the two newcomers in silence.

She had to say, seeing them more up close took her breath away. Both of them were so incredibly good looking, it kind of embarrassed her how much she thought so.

Reassuringly, she told her mind she didn't have any shotacon tendencies and that she genuinely just thought that in terms of appearance, the two of them were absolutely stunning.

She'd never seen a pair of kids their age look so, for the lack of better word, beautiful.

"Hey, is she a friend of yours, Boris?" One of them questioned curiously as he came to notice her.

She felt her heartbeat momentarily pick up when she locked eyes with the other when they all turned around to her. Quickly, she turned away a bit meek at the attention she was receiving.

That was a strange feeling she got…

"Oh, right! Guys, this is Alice! She's a human!" He explained with a grin that immediately made the two boys go wide eyed,

"Whoa!" "Seriously!?"

"Alice, these two are Dee and Dum." He pointed at each of them respectively and Alice put a friendly smile on her face with a nod.

Attempting to push back her body's odd sense of alertness, she took a step toward them, "It's nice to meet you both." Her eyes danced around their form in search of some sort of animal attribute and when her results came up short she blinked, "Are you two lycans as well?"

Boris blanched, his expression faltering severely as the two boys walked up to her with smiles on their faces.

"Lycans? Alice, you couldn't be anymore more far off, they're—"

"You smell really good." Dee informed her with his blue eyes shimmering into hers hypnotically.

Boris' voice dulled into nothing while she slowly nodded down at the two males that now clung to both of her arms.

Dum wore a matching expression, his irises just as enticing that she couldn't find it in herself to look away, "We bet you taste just as good."

Once again, her head nodded and Alice was beginning to feel her own body becoming heavy as nothing but Dee and Dum filled her senses.

All other noises were gone, all other sights were gone, and she couldn't even feel anything except for their hands on her arms.

"So how about it, big sis?" Dee sang out lightly with a small laugh,

"Do we have permission to drink from you?" Dum continued.

His words made her mind wake up from the dream-like state it had once been in though her body refused to act and get out of their arms.

Against what she wanted, her head gave a nod and she felt her heart beat begin to pick up incredibly fast as both boys' faces moved to either sides of her neck.

They weren't lycans.

They were vampires.

Fearfully, she willed her body to move, but as though it were stuck in time, it remained glued in place and she felt tears of frustration threatening to make their way to her half-lidded eyes that were still stuck staring at toward the floor blankly.

The feel of their teeth grazing the skin of her neck sent a shiver down her spine and she prepared to feel the sensation of their bite when all else seemed hopeless.

It was going to hurt, she could just tell.

"You dumb kids need to stop goofing off, especially when we're in enemy territory!"

All at once, the weight bearing presences that had been on her shoulders disappeared in an instant and when they did, Alice found feeling and motion returning to her body.

Gasping for air, she immediately took several steps backward with both of her hands protectively flying to her neck before she looked upward.

The two twins were still in the spot she'd just been standing at, their eyes pointed downward where two men were beginning to approach.

One of them wore an immensely irritated expression on his face while he glared at them fiercely, "Stop running off when we're on the job!" He hit them both on top of the head in aggravation.

The immediate thing Alice came to notice about him was the large pair of brown rabbit ears that rested on his wavy blond hair. His face was another thing; even though he appeared angry, he was very attractive, but more manish unlike the twins that had more of a child-like beauty about them.

Beside him, she found herself hitching a breath at the second man, one with dark hair and a rather large top hat that was decorated with roses and cards. Even from her distance, she could tell he was just as, if not, more stunning in terms of looks than the other three.

But that wasn't what caught her attention…

He seemed familiar…

The twins clutched their heads painfully, "We're only kids, you stupid rabbit! We deserve a break from time to time!"

"Yeah! Besides, we were only getting a quick snack from big sis!"

With their words, it seemed as though everyone turned to her now and Alice found herself in an incredibly embarrassing situation as the male she had once been staring at caught her looking.

Her face heated up slightly and as ashamed as she was, she couldn't find it in herself to look away.

He was so good looking and though she was sure she'd remember anyone that looked as gorgeous as him, she couldn't remember…

His piercing blue eyes seemed to look completely through her and she could feel the hypnotic feeling she had once endured with the twins threaten to take her over as she stared at him openly.

"I don't believe we've met before."

The raven haired man's voice was as enthralling as his appearance and Alice couldn't have said she was surprised.

Wordlessly, she watched as he took a couple more steps forward until he was before her.

Bowing slightly, he took one of her hands; his eyes still not leaving hers before he kissed the top of it quickly, something that made Alice's whole body threaten to shake in embarrassment.

Suddenly, she felt herself become that much more insecure about her appearance.

"I am Blood Dupre. It's an honor to meet you, young miss."

"I… Uh… I'm Alice." She quietly stated, now feeling more power to her system, she tore her eyes from his and grabbed her hand back, her eyes moving to the floor.

With the way he was dressed and how he spoke, she wouldn't be surprised if he was some sort of vampire aristocrat.

He seemed so classy and there she was gawking like some sort of peasant… He probably thought she was weird.

But she honestly couldn't shake the feeling that she saw his face somewhere else before…

"She's a human!" Both boys exclaimed in unison, "We just wanted to see what they tasted like!" Dee said while his brother nodded, "They're very rare after all!"

Alice felt her face falter, "I-I'm not some sort of wine that you can just sip up whenever you want!"

The two pouted at her sadly and she found slight regret at her words right after.

They were so cute…

Boris now decided to speak up again with a sigh, "She smells good to me too, but you don't see me gnawing off her legs to see what she tastes like."

Not really taking his comparison too well, Alice's eye gave a twitch while she stepped away from him.

"You two should know better than to just go feeding off of a human like that." Blood's authoritative voice seemed to silence everyone in the group and even Alice found herself straightening up at his stoic tone.

She watched him curiously before the blond man now perked up her way, "If you're human that explains why your blood smells so good!" The look of wonder on his face kind of caught her by surprise, "You said your name is Alice, right?"

She nodded.

"My name is Elliot and I'm sorry that these two brats gave you trouble." Right after his words he hit them both on top of the head once more, earning pain-filled cries from the twins. He flashed her a smile that she couldn't help but return, "Won't happen again, I promise."

"We didn't mean to hurt her!"

"Stop trying to make us seem like bad people!"

"It was nothing really." She laughed off lightly when the twins both gave her sullen, apologetic expressions.

Even though they were vampires… She actually felt strangely relaxed around them…

They weren't nearly as scary as she thought.

"Hey, Blood, wouldn't it be great if she came back to the mansion with us? Maybe she could live there too?" Elliot questioned his boss brightly and Alice willed herself not to look over at the man because she didn't want to be trapped under his spell once more.

Elliot turned back to her, his face giving a wide grin, "I'm sure you'd love it there, Alice. You should come back with us."

His fangs were now all too visible beneath the sunlight and Alice unconsciously took a step back while she stared at his sparkling teeth in slight fear.

Sure, now she felt relaxed around them, but if she were stuck in a giant mansion alone with them, especially at night…

Just the thought of it was simply terrifying.

"A-ahaha…" She laughed weakly, "I already have a place to stay, sorry. Thanks for the offer though."

"Aww!" Dee and Dum whined while Elliot frowned.

"You wouldn't happen to know where the Owner is, would you?" Alice vaguely saw Blood question in Boris' direction.

Boris' ear twitched while he held his chin, "Last I saw him was near the fountain by the entrance."

"I see." Blood's cane tapped the floor while he gave his three subordinates a brief look, "Come along now." With his words they began to walk away and right as he did, Blood glanced over his shoulder at Alice with a smile on his lips, "Young miss, I really do implore you to visit my mansion at the very least. I'll be sure to make your time there as pleasurable as possible."

Alice watched him take his leave in stunned silence, her heartbeat finally slowing when they were out of sight.

"So, he's the leader of the Hatter territory, right?" Alice sighed out to Boris who scratched his cheek, "Yup… Blood 'Mad Hatter' Dupre, leader of the Hatter Coven… He's here to do land negotiations with the Old Man right now actually… Which is why I think it's best if you go."

As charming as he had seemed to her, she reminded herself that he had to be dangerous, though the feeling of familiarity she got from looking at him couldn't be shaken off.

Taking hold of her hand, he began leading her away and Alice bit her bottom lip, "I thought vampires burned in sunlight, or at least that's what my world always believed."

Boris snorted, "That'd make them such wimps. Wouldn't be as fun fighting them if that were the case. Here, vampires just get weaker in the daytime. A lot of their powers are really dulled down and they can't use certain abilities… Eh, all except for head vampires."

"You mean like Blood?"

"Correcto, Miss Aliceo."

Alice took in his words with a nod.

If she wanted to survive, at least knowing the basics was important.

Soon, the two found their way to a minor exit where Boris briefly explained to the worker who Alice was before they slipped their way out onto the pathway that was surrounded by forest,

"Alright, so whenever the Old Man and Blood interact, they basically go nuts and make fights break out everywhere." Boris explained easily while Alice watched at him dumbfounded, "You couldn't resist the twins' charm in the daytime, I doubt you'll survive a lycan-vampire encounter between those two. It usually gets pretty intense." His face broke out into a grin that truthfully made her feel uneasy.

"You wanted to get to the Castle of Hearts, right?"

Now remembering her original cause, Alice inwardly hit herself for forgetting so quickly before she nodded at him eagerly.

"Well, just take this path. It'll lead you to the Clock Tower, so just go across that territory and take the pathway that continues in parallel to this one. It should honestly take you right in the Castles' territory, no problem at all." The Cat explained with a nod before he glanced over his shoulder, "I'd walk you there myself, but I'm really not in the mood. Besides…"

In the distance, a loud roar that was familiar as the same lycan one Alice had heard earlier shook through her mind.

Nervously, she took a single step backward with a wince.

Boris' grin became wider as he turned to her, "I think staying here is more fun." He turned around in order to return to the exit and he gave her a wave, "If the Prime Minister doesn't make you an Alice-kebob you really need to come back here and visit!"

Another howl was heard and Boris now began racing back in.

Alice dully watched until he disappeared back in before she turned around on her heel and sighed heavily.

Her hand slipped into her apron pocket to clutch her vial tightly.

Taking a deep breath she began her trek onward.

She'd definitely get there this time.

-.-

Next chapter we take it to the Castle of Hearts to meet up with the relatively unstable elemental gang.

Very sorry if this chapter seemed close to the manga, sigh, next chapter differs more so I hope it's more original there.

Hearing your thoughts through a review would be great :) It motivates me to update faster!