New chapter, so soon?
Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee~
"We're lost! Just admit it!"
"I think I would know if I'm lost, damn brat!"
The Hatter pushed aside a large hanging vine, cursing under his breath as the scene remained the same no matter how far they walked. In Wonderland, one false step and you found yourself lost for god-knows how long.
"Can't we just go back to the dirt path?" Teito struggled to say as he fought with the greenery. He found it strange that it seemed to wrap around his ankles, as if trying to trip him. "I don't like these plants. They keep –!"
A loud rustling and strangle cry replaced Teito's unfinished sentence. Frau turned, startled, to catch sight of Teito's arm desperately trying to dig into the dirt below, the rest of his body disappeared into the dense foliage beside him. He reached down and took the boy's wrist, pulling harshly until Teito's dirt smeared face appeared. Teito forced down deep breaths; his chest was crushed by the plants, not allowing him the ability to breathe normally. He fought to free his other arm, the one that Frau had been pulling on seemed ready to pop out of his shoulder.
"Damn it, brat! Stop trying to get yourself killed!" Frau grunted. He reached to take a fist full of Teito's coat and pulled him out with one final jerk. Still holding him by the scruff of the coat, he placed the teen to sit on his outstretched forearm, holding him against his own body. Startled by his sudden placement, Teito took hold of the Hatter's coat collar, not wanting to fall off from the height he was now at.
"P-put me down!"
"No wonder we got lost, and try not to scream in my ear, brat." Frau continued to walk forward, the weight of the teen not much of a bother. He expected the kid to be a bit heavier; his clothes made him seem bulky. "The plants must be working for him now. Shit, everything's turnin' topsy-turvy. This is what happens when one side gets stronger than the other."
"W-what are you talking about?" Teito looked down to the blond, unable to see much due to the top hat's broad rim.
"See, I told you I wasn't lost. The plants kept shifting to keep us from moving forward." With his free hand, Frau pointed forward, towards an arc created by two bending trees.
Teito leaned closer to the Hatter, trying to avoid the slender fingers of the trees overhead. They looked almost ready to snatch him out of Frau's hold. He turned his attention to the sudden clearing, squinting as the sudden light slapped him in the face.
Before them was a giant meadow, bigger than the gardens Teito was used to seeing on his father's estate. The grass seemed blue in color, Teito could only wish he could inspect it but from his current position, he would need to be put down, something he did not think the Hatter was willing to do just yet.
"Is the grass blue?" he asked instead.
"Yup, they like changing the color of the plants at times."
"Who's they? You know, you've never answered my question." Teito glared down at the blond, though more or less, glared down at his hat.
"…It's best you know less about this place," the Hatter whispered.
"Why," Teito asked, feeling almost defeated. "Why can't I know? If it's not a dream, I don't want to end up doing something reckless and stupid."
"Don't worry brat!" Frau's voice seemed to pick up cheerfulness. Soon, Teito found himself on his feet; Frau stretched out his near asleep arm. "I told you, didn't I? I'll protect you." Without even stealing a glance towards the boy, the Hatter walked towards the middle of the field, keeping his back towards the smaller male.
The wind blew suddenly, strong and rough, carrying with it the smell of nature.
"Looks like we can get there now," Frau spoke skyward.
Teito watched in stunned silence as something black began emerging from within the sleeve of the blond's coat. It stretched out, like black rubber; a deep growling stilled the quiet forest.
"Close your eyes, kid."
Unsure why, Teito closed his eyes as the rumbling grew louder. The ground below him shook violently. The teen fell to his hands and knees, the earth felt as if it was beginning to sink.
"Frau!" Teito shouted out, his eyes still closed.
"Kid, grab my hand!"
But before Teito could even begin to do so, the ground below him gave out, his eyes shot open to notice the sky above was growing darker by the second. The rocks he was kneeling on soon disappeared. Almost in slow motion, he was thrown backwards, falling head first to whatever was below. His head became light, his breathing heavy; the sky above soon became nothing more than a tiny dot of blue. Flashes of memory past began to fill his mind. He was one year younger, Fea Kruez was presenting him with his first set of clothing; the man had a loving smile on his face, his eyes watery. The image blurred, soon it showed a much younger version of himself, between the ages of seven and ten. He was running down a filthy alley, a heavy bundle under his arm – a giant piece of cooked meat. Objects were being thrown at him while shouts followed after. He stumbled over an overturned trash can, he fell. A bear of a man caught up to him and pulled out a rolling pin from a pocket on his apron. The man glared down at him with no mercy in those dark eyes. The image distorted, he was much younger now, much, much smaller. He began to take his first steps toward a man shrouded in darkness, his mind filled with childish thoughts. He could not keep himself steady, as if the floor was unstable. Something glittered on the man's wrist, a small red stone hanging from a bracelet. "Come on, Teito-kun. Come to Papa…"
"…Father?"
Teito opened his eyes, the world about him dark though faint flowing lights shown from the corners of his vision. He felt unbearably cold. As he tried to sit up, something heavy slid off his waist. He looked down to see the blond motionless beneath him. Teito removed himself from on top of the Hatter, looking down, frightened, at the quiet man. He shook the man's broad shoulders roughly but nothing happened. With his hat thrown off to the side, Teito noticed that Frau's golden hair was matted with dark splatters. Hesitant, the teen ran a hand through those dark patches, brining it up to inspect. With the glowing light he still could not identify, the liquid on his fingertips turned a different swirl of colors though one remained constant – red.
"F-Frau?" His voice was shaky, mind unable to comprehend what could possibly be going on. "Frau! Get up! You were supposed to help me get out of here, damn bastard! S-stop…stop sleeping." His voice faded away as grieve constricted his heart.
"Kid," the blond suddenly grunted, "you're kneeling on my arm."
Startled, Teito looked down to find that it was true. How he did not notice before was a certain surprise but the realization that the blond had spoken, relief swept over him. Teito punched Frau in the chest.
"Don't ever do that again! Stupid Frau!"
The Hatter reached over and placed his large hand on Teito's russet hair, ruffling it harshly as he pushed down on him. "Aw~! Little brat was worried about me!"
"N-no I wasn't!" Teito desperately tried to remove Frau's hand from his head.
The blond sat up while keeping his hand on Teito. With his other hand, he retrieved his top hat and returned it to his head, soon using Teito as a means of pushing himself up. The teen's neck hurt beyond all reason now.
Wincing, Teito stood to his feet while he rubbed his neck. They both stood in place, Frau began to look around but Teito looked to the other. From under the hat, it was still obvious the man was bleeding.
"Frau, are you sure you're alright?"
"Come on, we need to find him before something finds us first."
The Hatter lead the way forward, Teito soon had to run after him to catch up. After being continually ignored, Teito took the opportunity to look around. The mystery of the odd light was finally solved. From all around them, mushrooms the size of trees stood tall and a bit bend all around them, each glowing in a different color. Teito felt like an ant as he continued to walk; there were odd patches of grass here and there, sometimes as tall as the mushrooms themselves. He caught sight of a giant yellow flower, an equally large ladybug scurried across its pedals.
"Frau…who are we suppose to find here?"
"Well, there's only one creature here worth our time: the blue caterpillar." The Hatter turned partially to the boy beside him. "Are you scared?"
"W-what?!" Teito turned furious to the man. "I am not scared! It's just…this is all so weird. It's starting to feel less and less like a dream…"
They continued to walk in silence, emerald eyes continued to dart at any little noise in the dark world. Teito's mind filled with question after question though he didn't dare voice them. Frau would certainly avoid explaining anything.
"Wait," Frau held out an arm, stopping Teito from advancing any further. His sapphire gaze traveled through the neon sea, odd flashes of blue twirled in the corners of his eyes. "…Hello?"
"Who are you?" a lazy voice echoed through the dark.
Both turned, startled, to a presence at the left of them. A man, thin build, gazed at them lazily from his perch on a petite blue mushroom (compared to the rest, it was rather short). A pipe was held loosely in his hand, an elegant, charming smile on his fair features. His hair was a striking blue color, though at odd times it took on a shade of violet. His eyes were held half open, amethyst in color. He lay on his mushroom, stomach down, with feet crossed in the air. From the looks of it, he wore something similar to a nightgown.
"Um, are you the blue caterpillar?" Teito asked, ducking under Frau's arm.
The man took in a deep breath of his pipe, a blue smoke emerging from his pursed lips. Much like the Hatter's, the man's smoke dissolved into a swaying picture, a blue worm crawled through the sky before disappearing.
"I have been known by that pseudonym, I take the name Labrador now. You have traveled from a far away place, have you not?"
"Y-yes, my name is Teito Klein; I have something to ask of you."
"I know." The man turned onto his back; he seemed amused as he watched them upside down. "I know everything, young Teito Klein. The past, the present and dare I say, the future. I know of what you will ask before you think of asking. You wish passage home."
Teito nodded, his voice lost for a moment.
"You will suffer many hardships in the future," Labrador took a long breath from his pipe, eyes turned skyward. Slowly, he opened his mouth and allowed the smoke to leave on its own accord. It swirled with a variety of colors. The man closed his eyes, relaxing into his mushroom that it almost appeared he had fallen asleep. "Such a haunting past, a warmer present but…your future decides the future of two worlds. You are…a very important creature, Teito Klein."
Labrador sat up abruptly, turning to the two men with lazy eyes and a caring smile. He reclined on an arm, the hand with the pipe beckoned Teito forward. Stealing a look towards Frau, who jerked his head forward to go, the teen walked up to the strange man. Teito was near the same height of the mushroom, though it passed him by a few inches.
From his perch, the blue haired man reached down and presented his hand for Teito to take. Cautious, but only for a moment, Teito took hold of the thin man's hand. He was pulled up easily onto the mushroom and sat on its soft, squishy head.
"Close your eyes, Teito Klein."
Teito nodded and followed instructions. He felt as Labrador's hand ran through his hair, an odd comforting feeling.
"In very little time…someone will come after you. They will tear down your world if you do not conclude the battle in your heart. Only then, will you find what you need and stop this power from destroying your world. Follow your heart, Teito."
Teito opened his eyes to find himself alone on the mushroom. Feeling a bit disoriented, he looked about. A glittering piece of silver on the mushroom caught his attention. He took the oddity into his hand; his hand tightly gripped the handle. It was shaped oddly, an elongated prism with a thinner stretch crossing nearer to the top, appearing like a cross. In addition, a curved prism passed through the main and thinner one, stopping before it connected once more to the main body. Where the curved part connected to the main body, a small glittering stone was placed. It shifted in colors, never remaining one for long.
"What's this?"
"It's called a Bascule, but this particular one is known as the 'Key of Truth'. It's a weapon as much as it is a key."
Teito turned in place, catching the blue gaze of his traveling companion.
Frau sat on the ground, back resting against a mushroom nearby. He was smoking, once more, as a means to relax himself. He watched as the teen turned back to the 'key' he held in his hand.
"Where did –?"
"Lab left, after he gave you that little talk. He disappeared out of the blue after he stopped moving for a good second or two."
"Did you hear –?"
"No. I heard nothing of it. It was only meant to be heard by you." Frau pushed himself to stand, unnecessarily dusting himself off. As Teito received a prophecy from the blue caterpillar, Frau had received a warning: 'Do not let go of Teito's hand.'
"Because it's my role, right?" he asked the prophet who had come down from his pedestal to stand before him.
"It goes beyond your role, Frau Hatter. You will not let the boy fail."
He was about to ask how this stranger could possibly know anything when, obviously, the thought came to him: "You're the blue caterpillar."
"I see the past, present and future. I know of your past Frau, I know of your present and I know of your future. And no, I cannot reveal the names of the other ghosts, but you know of them, do you not, Frau? The flowers are always willing to help."
And Labrador disappeared into a shower of pedals, leaving behind a single silver rose.
Frau had replaced one of the red roses on his top hat with the silver one. He fingered it lightly as he pretended to fix the brim of his hat. Soon Teito jumped down from the mushroom, a smile on his face.
It was that simple, already Teito had collected two of the seven pieces needed. Soon he would be home with his father, all this nonsense of Wonderland behind him...
Shoulda made Labrador a REAL caterpillar
xD