Very sorry about the longer wait, that probably won't happen again. I had gotten distracted again (who, me?), but am now back on track again. R&R, lovelies!
Disclaimer: I own nothing of Alice in Wonderland. Lewis Carroll, Disney, and Tim Burton do.
Inspirational Song: "Diamond Eyes" - Shinedown
. . . . .
Alice took the final step off the Silver Staircase, walking in step with the White Queen. They'd only spent another moment or two together on the balcony. The night had turned far too dark for the other critters to feel safe outside of their homes. The last time things had felt as foreboding as this, disastrous things had happened in the dark. Everyone could feel it. They'd all fallen back into their old routines of precaution and safety once again.
That fact brought shame to Alice. She was the White Queen's Champion, after all! Surely, she could've done something to prevent this. This, being whatever was coming. But since she did not prevent it,she'd just have to fight it. Again, whatever 'it' may be.
Mirana and her had barely turned the corner when two men ran up to them. Alice stumbled to a halt, so as not to run into them. One was her Hatter, wearing an anxious look on his face and peering at the man next to him evasively. Sir Lawrence had the usual fierce look about him. His bubblegum-pink hair stood out against his sharp features.
Mirana tilted her head to the side. "Is there something wrong, Lawrence?"
Sir Lawrence bowed his head to Mirana and merely met Alice's gaze with a blush. Alice clasped her hands at the waist. She suspected that Sir Lawrence wasn't quite over her yet.
It was during Hatter's capture that Alice had endured the most infuriating of training lessons with Sir Lawrence. (And that was truly saying something.) He had insisted that she and him court and that Alice had to be utterly clueless to not see what a fine match they would make. And as if that weren't enough, he'd also verbally assaulted Hatter. After Alice's not-too-polite lecture, he must have realized how foolish he had been. The awkwardness of the whole thing hadn't started immediately, for they'd just won a war. But after that thrill had worn off, they remembered what had happened between them during their last training session and had been tactfully avoiding one another ever since. Alice thought the whole thing was becoming rather tiresome now, but she couldn't expect what would happen if she suddenly started acting casual again.
Yet every once in a while, he'd see Alice and quickly turn away to start barking the most random and reasonless orders at passers-by. He was a very sentient man.
"Your Majesty," he said. "Uilleam the Dodo bird is in urgent need of your medical attention."
"Oh," she replied calmly. "He's probably here for another strengthening potion. He's simply not as limber as he used to be, you see." She waved her hand daintily and Alice sighed with relief. She'd thought by Hatter's fretful expression that something had gone horribly wrong. Yet his expression didn't soften a measure.
"He's not the one in need of a potion," Hatter said in a low tone.
Mirana looked at him quizzically. "Oh?"
Sir Lawrence cleared his throat, drawing her gaze back to him. Hatter scowled at him. "Yes, Your Magnificence. But you are required immediately." Hatter nodded in agreement, although neither of them actually stated the reason for the critical necessity of Mirana's expertise.
Alice's brow furrowed. "Will you two finally tell us what's wrong?"
Hatter tilted his head at her with a sheepish smile. His gaze shifted to Mirana's as he placed his hat over his heart. "Your Majesty, the Dodo Bird came here with a very-much wounded Absolem."
"He's unconscious," Sir Lawrence added.
Alice gasped. Mirana said in a strong, steady voice, "Take us to him."
Hatter and Sir Lawrence turned on the spot and the four of them were quickly speeding down the corridor. Anyone they passed would turn to look at them, but then quickly look down, as if it were disrespectful to see the White Queen and her Royals caught in such a audacious task. They turned into a long room on the left into what Alice assumed was to be Wonderland's version of a hospital room.
Three pure white beds with silver balustrades lined the left wall when coming in. At the end of the line was a foggy, tiled window in which the moonlight shone through. On the far wall was an ornate mirror. Every other space in the room was occupied by either a cabinet, a table for tools, or a pair of chairs where visitors were to sit. Instead of the expected plushy carpet, a sparkly gray tiling adorned the floor.
Uilleam was resting on the second bed with his cane on his lap. The four walked over to him, Hatter placing his hand on the Dodo's shoulder. He merely nodded.
On the table beside them was a wicker basket with a blue pillow inside. Alice leaned over to get a good look of what was inside and let out a little breath of air.
Absolem lay on the pillow with a nearly complete tear in one of his wings. His little body was battered and his monocle and hookah sat next to him. It was so odd for Alice to see him like this. She'd thought Absolem was invincible. Which was odd, really, considering his size. But the creature had emitted power, and never the image of vulnerability.
She looked at Uilleam. "How did this happen?" she whispered. She saw Mirana wordlessly open a cabinet loaded with potions from the corner of her eye.
Uilleam sighed wearily. "I do not know. He sent me a message from his hookah, saying that he was on his way to come see me. Urgent business to discuss, he'd said."
Alice heard Hatter murmur, "A wonder everything you can do with that hookah," to himself. She looked over and saw him looking curiously at the said object.
Uilleam continued. "He never arrived, so I took it upon myself to see what was taking so long." He wiped his feathery brow. "I found him like this on a leaf, after nearly getting slammed down by a JubJub Bird."
"A JubJub Bird?" Sir Lawrence echoed. "We've been informed that the whole flock has fled."
"I had thought the same." Uilleam looked the First Guard in the eye. "But I suppose they're back."
Sir Lawrence shook his head and began to pace the room's length. "No," he said plainly. "No. No, that's nonsense. . . That would mean. . ." He was muttering under his breath. No one cared to bother him.
Alice sat down on the cot across from Uilleam, her eyes never breaking away from Absolem's crippled form. She felt someone sink into the bed beside her, but didn't bother looking at who it was, for she already knew. A bandaged hand took hers and pressed it against the owner's lips.
"Will you be alright?" Hatter's voice asked her.
She nodded numbly. "It's just. . . shocking."
"I know," he said in his brogue. "I know."
Mirana swept into her view, breaking the spell on Alice. She blinked and watched what the White Queen was doing. She'd rolled in one of the desktops, which now supported several bottles of what were predictably holding healing potions. There was also the miniature version of a bandage roll laying on its side.
Mirana took a cotton swab and dipped it into one of the crystal containers, pulling it out for it to be dripping with a creamy blue balm. She pinched the two fragments of the torn wing together as delicately as possible with one hand and spread the cream across the seam with her other. Alice watched with wide eyes as the tear already began to sizzle and seemingly melt the wing back together.
Mirana looked up at Alice quickly before getting back to work. "Yes, the remedies we've found from within our land are certainly things to be grateful for."
"That's amazing," she said in awe.
Mirana gave her a small smile and mixed the contains of a thin, green bottle and a bulbous, purple one. Bubbles started foaming out once mixed, and only then did Mirana take a bit of that liquid and force it down Absolem's throat.
Alice expected Absolem's eyes to flutter open, or at least for him to cough or splutter, but his chest only began to rise and fall more rapidly and cleanly than before. Alice and Hatter looked up at Mirana with confused faces.
She frowned. "I'm afraid that's all I can do for now. Time will want us to wait."
"To wait?" Alice repeated with widened eyes. "That's truly all we can do?"
Hatter shook his head. "Time can be so cruelly slurvish," he muttered.
Mirana nodded. "It shouldn't be too long. Medicines tend to work even faster the smaller the injured." Her tone grew stronger. "If only we knew what, or who, is more likely, caused this."
"And how powerful or many they are," Sir Lawrence added. He placed his hands on the frame at the end of the bed Alice and Hatter were sitting on. "If it was Stayne, then we will certainly have a challenge on our hands. But there is no challenge we cannot conquer." He grinned with a gleaming look in his eye. "There is nothing Wonderland cannot win."
Alice actually had to stifle a laugh at Sir Lawrence's masculine brutality. "True, Sir Lawrence, but we cannot simply search the whole of Wonderland for the Knave. Especially when we know nothing about what this. . . challenge, holds for us."
Hatter nodded. "Aye. Thae didn't exactly work too well las' time."
Sir Lawrence glared at him. "For the last time, milliner, it wasn't my fault you ran off like that! I certainly didn't tell you to sprint the whole way to Salazen Grum."
"You might as well have," Hatter said indignantly. "You're the 'First Guard', the 'General to the White Queen', and who could forget, the 'Royal and Magnificent Blahbibidieblah'!" he mocked.
Sir Lawrence's jaw clenched. "That's right, I am. So you better watch it, milliner-"
"Really, you two are just like schoolboys when you get like this!" Alice stood up and walked over to Mirana and Uilleam, ignoring Hatter's slight frown. Mirana was studying a piece of parchment that had been left on the desktop. The Dodo had been silently staring at the ceiling for quite some time now. Alice placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. He blinked slowly.
"I'm terribly sorry, Miss Alice." Sir Lawrence crossed his arms. "I'm simply not accustomed with such-"
"Drop it."
"Of course."
Alice sighed. Hatter opened his mouth to speak, but was quickly interrupted by a sudden crashing sound that seemed to come from somewhere above their heads. They all looked up at the ceiling, mimicking Uilleam's ready position. All was silent for a moment.
"What was that?" Mirana asked.
They had no time to answer. Two loud 'thumps' sounded from above, and then a long clattering.
Sir Lawrence took off wordlessly with Alice right behind him. She heard Hatter scuttle in line and sprint in pace beside her. Mirana had to have been right behind. "Uilleam, stay back with Absolem, and let no one in!" she shouted. They turned onto the Silver Staircase, lucky they were so near the top. They probably wouldn't have heard the commotion from above if they'd been any lower. And it was nearly impossible to say that they could've reached the top in time if they'd been at the bottom. For all Alice knew, though, it could already be too late. She quickened her run, falling in step with Sir Lawrence.
They crashed through the door that led to the Looking Glass. Alice gasped.
The White Guards that had stood at the door containing the Looking Glass lay on the floor, deathly and utterly still. The single window that resided in this room was completely broken, the glass scattered all over the floor. A frumious JubJub Bird hovered in the middle of the room, flapping its extensive wings and screeching at an excruciatingly high pitch.
Only now did Alice realize that she didn't have a weapon on her, and was therefore worthless. Exasperated, Alice watched both Hatter and Sir Lawrence lunge forward at the monster. She slapped a hand over her mouth when she saw it scratch Hatter's skin through his jacket.
She realized there was actually something she could do. Mirana was simply standing there in a corner, completely vulnerable to any danger. Alice marched over and placed herself directly in front of her. She felt Mirana's cool hand on her waist. She looked over her shoulder to see a reassuring smile upon the Queen's face. Alice nodded back and pressed herself even closer to the Queen. The JubJub Bird had crept closer.
The JubJub Bird leaped up and made to swipe at Sir Lawrence's face, but Hatter was quicker. He actually managed to grab hold of one of the creature's feet and whirled it around, smashing it into a wall. It slid down and stood up shakily.
Finally, Hatter and Sir Lawrence finished it off. The sight was a bit more unpleasant than it probably needed to be, but it was a well-known fact that Sir Lawrence liked to make a show of his battles. The growing puddle of blood caused a gag to arise from Mirana's throat. Alice whirled around and placed a hand on her back. She didn't stand too near, for she was undoubtedly in need of breathing room.
Mirana smiled at her. "You make a wonderful Champion, Alice," she whispered. Alice smiled back in return.
They both brought their attention back to the scene before them. Ignoring the mess in the corner and the bodies that lay against the wall, Alice looked out the window. As she had predicted, there was no rope dangling over the edge of the castle. "Whoever had barged in had simply left their ride here with us, then?" she asked.
She turned around to her friends and saw Sir Lawrence nod. "Yes, which probably made for a nice distraction. The trespasser is gone."
"But their whereabouts are not unknown," a dead voice sounded. Mirana was standing next to Hatter and looking in at where the Looking Glass stood. Alice's heart dropped. She moved forward and placed a hand on Hatter's arm, who quickly pulled her closer. She looked in at the Glass and stared.
It was completely shattered. The black hole in the center was still smoking, emitting the smell of a burnt-out fire. A slight sizzle could be heard. A pile of glittering shards lay at the base of the broken icon. Alice noted something she had not seen on the mirror before. Near the top of the mirror was a row of unfamiliar symbols. She hadn't seen them before because they hadn't been glowing a bright gold. Now they were.
Hatter's brow furrowed. Alice watched him curiously as he bent down in front of the pile of glass and pulled something out from beneath it. They all gasped. Anyone who had been on the Checkerboard Battlefield on that Mutando Day would recognize this blade anywhere. It was the sword that had ended Iracabeth of Crims by Hamish Ascot's hand. Dried blood still hadn't been cleaned off it.
Alice turned to see Mirana's stricken face. She pointed at the glowing symbols. "Your Majesty, what do those mean?"
Mirana swallowed slowly, still looking at what remained of the Looking Glass. "The symbols indicate that someone has indeed traveled through the Looking Glass, but has also broken it from the other side." She took a deep breath. "It cannot be repaired from this end, nor can we go through it. As of this moment, the Looking Glass is useless."
. . . . .
Insanity: I smell trouble, dear readers! Trouble, drama, and action. What shaaall happen next?
Rachel: What, are you practicing for a sales commercial now?
Insanity: Keep every option open only until you have to close it.
~ I really hope I don't keep you all waiting for so long again, but it is true that Reviews would definitely quicken things up a bit. You can let me know that you actually do want more of this whale blubber. Not beggin', just sayin'! ~