About as Mad as a Hatter
Yes, I'm going to continue this! Along with a new OC, I reintroduce to you Snowy Chains of a Trojan Horse! Recreate: Regenesis will be continuing! Just for now, I'm taking a little break off of that. Sorry for the long wait!
Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY, that belongs to Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth, extensively. I do not own Alice in Wonderland/Alice: Madness Returns, they belong to whoever contributed in making it (I don't know who they are). I do, however, own any and all OCs as well as twisted plot/Canon.
Now, for the love of God, let this Fanfiction begin!
-= *A Mad Hatter is Afoot* =-
"Hysteria," the thought bellowed. "The most powerful Semblance Failsafe in the history of Remnant. The most notorious. The most bloody. And most haunting."
It battered her up. It tore her from the inside out.
"Hysteria is only activated when therare user's Aura is between the yellow and red," it continued.
It ripped her from limb to limb in a numbing state.
"But," it went once more. "Their Aura levels never hits the red."
'Neverending,' as she'd put it.
"It is a blessing," the thought said. "And a curse," it added bitterly.
"A Semblance Failsafe," Professor Brance continued. "Is the Aura's last stand against an enemy. For example-"
Professor Samantha Brance, she thought with contempt. One of the most known teachers in the area, putting her in second place in most books. Second only to Professor Peach as far as she knew.
Her memories scattered, she tried her best to continue on with life. Her clothes may have been retro in some's eyes, but she didn't care. She didn't care if her weapon was 'overdone.'
Alice was Alice.
"Alice?" a voice called.
She looked up to find Ricky Road, her team leader, staring at her with concern. His brown eyes laced with determination to help. Pity, as she'd call it.
"I'm okay," she brushed him off.
She hated pity.
"Whatever you say, Alice," he said with a long sigh. He looked back up to pay attention to the Professor.
Alice was allowed to just sit and think in her class, the Professor having already known she could handle Semblance Manipulation quite well. The Professor also said that she understood her.
How do you understand someone who's lost their entire family in a house fire? How do you understand someone who could be as mad as a hatter for all she cared? How could you understand someone who had the Hysteria Failsafe Semblance?
You don't.
That's the way it went in society.
All the jeering, she could handle well.
But put her up on stage?
No, she thought. That wouldn't work.
Alice Bedlam? On a stage?
She shook her head.
By now she cared for no deaths, even after Professor Vermillion's over a month ago. Ozpin's Dust knows where, and Goodwitch has been a little more crazier than usual.
Now that Professor Port has stopped with his stupid stories, she'd say Professor Vermillion's death was well timed.
She didn't care for the stab wound through his chest, or the littered-about specks of black and sparks. She just didn't care.
People knew of her family's death, and everything she'd had to go through, so they held both no care for her, and did not dare mess with her.
And she daresay, one person that even tries to make fun of her, she'll murder them brutally. Maybe even to the point of controlling Hysteria.
The moment the school's population had discovered her Failsafe Semblance, they'd kept a bitter distance from her. Although appreciated, she couldn't help but feel more empty inside.
Okay, maybe her team was nice to her enough to help her through with the loneliness.
Perhaps they have removed the feeling.
Oh, who was she kidding? She's as mad as a hatter, and no one can help-
Ping. Ding. Piing. Ding.
The bell rung its usual chimes, and the students were let out of class.
Whatever, she thought. Now that third period was over, let's have fun in the next class...
Whatever she wanted to do at the moment was completely shattered.
She repeated the lines amplified throughout the amphitheater in her mind: "Alice Bedlam of team Raspberry versus Orion S. Belte of team Snowy."
Much to her discomfort, she stood up abrasively and walked down to the stage.
"Much different from the usual fights," Professor Goodwitch said. "Today, we'll have a change of grounds."
There were two rocket lockers that came from the floor on platform elevators. The doors swung open.
"You're not doing this because of the prank we pulled on Yin, are you?" asked Orion.
"Whatever do you mean?" Professor Goodwitch asked. A ghost of a smirk appeared on her lips before it turned back into a scowl. "Now get in."
The screens, left or right on top of the stage, showed a landscape with different types of obstacles - albeit, she couldn't see the entire area from their distance.
This boy. This opponent of hers. Orion Belte;
He wore a thin blue tee - a horrible decision, really - underneath multiple layers of leather bracers. Along his forearms and hands landed gauntlets, each other their own petty black designs. His pants, literally blue jeans - bad for her tastes - with their respective layers of leather bracers on their own, and a mighty belt. They were tucked in, a small bit jutting over the top, boots. Leather boots, with metal fastenings and even their own silver designs.
What she didn't get was where his weapon was. His dark blue eyes - barely any shine - stared off at Professor Goodwitch a moment.
Though maybe she shouldn't even be talking. She wore a dress. A bloody dress with white trims! Light blue, maybe that was cute to people. Her white tie that 'cutely' tied into bunny ears at the back. What people didn't get was the skull that came with it. Her black hair flowed down just past her shoulders. Her mascara just decided to be more underneath than above, creating almost sleep bags beneath her eyes. She didn't care, as long as it kept others away.
She made for the locker and shut the door on herself - his being hesitant, but doing it anyway.
On each locker - Alice the only one noticing - she put in the same password, meaning she was going to launch them off in the same location.
"Good luck," Professor Goodwitch said. "I am against this idea, as Grimm will also be there to annoy the both of you."
She pressed a few buttons on her Scroll. The beep began counting down from five.
4...
"In Ozpin's words..." she said slowly.
3...
"Chose wisely."
2...
"Whether or not to fight each other..."
1...
"Or the Grimm..."
Awesome! she thought. Sarcasm is most useful.
They launched through the ceiling.
She finally decided to kick the locker open. She decided she'd rest a few minutes, calm her mind and all. But it wouldn't have it.
The more she stayed there the more she looked stupid.
With a might slam, the door swung open.
She was met with utter defeat against blindness. Temporarily.
She was finally able to see more and heaved her body out of the infernal machine. She ripped her vorpal sharp knife out - Wonderland, what a beautiful name for a death machine...
Its edge keenly thin, being able to cut through most objects and all, she ran a hand on the flat side, checking on the Dust runes she recently placed on it.
Void Dust, that's good. She got the right one.
But against what? She couldn't judge his weapon balance, so she didn't know which Dust was the correct.
Well, Void Dust is mildly effective, so why not?
Eyeing her left for movement in a shuddering bush, she turned all her attention towards it.
Her normal Semblance was beautiful to most people...until they know who she was...
The Beowulf emerged from the bush and tried to growl, only to have a stab to the chest.
Passing an illegitimate distance of approximately ten meters, she disappeared into a fine blue wispy mist, butterflies appearing in her wake.
She ripped Wonderland from its dead body. It fell over, and slowly - ever so slowly - disappeared into nothing.
Indiscriminate murderer - like the Grimm - she was.
She killed any Grimm, for no reason.
As a Huntress, her mind reasoned. As a Huntress, you are to kill every Grimm you see.
Before asking herself what they did to humans, she smacked herself. She was getting stupid.
"Hey," a voice sounded. She turned into her blue butterflies once more, leaving the edge of the knife on Orion's throat. "Calm down-er, Alice."
"Aren't we supposed to be fight-"
"Or against the Grimm," he cut her off. "The Professor said either each other, or the Grimm."
"I fear no Grimm."
"Then why do you fear me?"
She deadpanned.
"What do you speak of?"
"Don't humans and Faunus fight what they don't understand?"
"Well, yes, but-"
"And what we don't understand," he cut her off. She glared at him. "We fear," he continued without skipping a beat.
"I don't fear you."
"Really?" he asked feigning incredulously. "Then put the knife down."
"You want me to put the knife down?" she asked with sheer anger - a raised voice, really.
"Calm do-"
"Do you want me to put the knife down?!" she interrupted him.
Just then, he ripped off his belt and lashed it out behind her. She cringed and shut her eyes for a slam to her back, only to hear a whip crack and a death rattle from a Beowulf.
She opened her eyes and looked behind her, surprised to find the neck of a Beowulf in a vice grip by Orion's Belt.
"You gonna kill it or what?" he asked with a strained voice. She looked to him to see he was having trouble. Looking back, it seemed that the Grimm was pulling against it. "Decapitate it, dammit!"
"Don't tell me what to do!" she yelled as she turned into blue once more, the blue essence ripping from the blade and creating an afterimage of itself.
It ran through the Beowulf's neck like it was literally nothing.
The belt whipped back and slapped him in the hand. "Gah!"
"Oh, don't be such a crybaby," jested Alice for once. She had never felt like insulting someone with mirth before, but easily kept a smile hidden.
"Whatever..." he murmured. It made her feel bad inside.
Why do I feel bad?! she screamed in her mind from the swift change of heart. Why do I feel like my Semblance's excess every time I dodge?! Every time those butterflies come out when I'm near him is exactly mirrored in my stomach!
She calmed down with a heavy sigh and noted to find out later.
"According to this," he said as he looked on his Scroll. "They want us both to each kill twenty Beowulves, one Ursa Major and a Grimm Den. Should be easy enough..."
"Sarcasm?" she asked, forcefully pushing down the mirth that threatened to overwhelm her vocal cords.
"Definitely," he responded immediately. Surely he must be used to it on contrast as I, she surmised. "I spy. With my little eye..." he started.
She looked up with an amused brow.
"33 Beowulves northwest..."
She deadpanned. "How can you be so sure?"
"Telescopic Vision, milady."
She flinched at the sudden name.
"Sorry, habit with the nicknames."
Ah, she thought, though quiet.
"Well," he continued. "Telescopic Vision is my Semblance. Failsafe is Premonition. That's pretty much self-explanatory."
"Understood," she said indifferently.
"I see," he said. "Could you tell me yours, if you don't mind?"
"Huh?" she asked incredulously.
"Could you tell me yours, if you don't mind?" he repeated for her.
She was confused now. Not by her logic nor the butterflies in her stomach. Not because he didn't know her Semblance and Failsafe nor do people ask nicely...
"My Semblance is Phase," she said, no longer restraining the mirth or the smile she believe she had. "My Failsafe is Hysteria."
"What's that?"
"Which one? Phase? Well-"
"No," he cut her off. "What's Hysteria?"
He didn't even know Hysteria?! she screamed in her mind.
"Is this some sort of jest?"
"Jest?" he asked. "No. What's Hysteria?" he repeated his question.
"You must be joking me," she put a hand on her right hip and leaned into it. "Everyone knows what the Failsafe Hysteria is."
"Not everyone," he said.
"Who in their right mind wouldn't know that Failsafe?!"
He quietly pointed to himself, no change in face, no change in movement. Just pointing to himself.
She sighed and rubbed her forehead with a hand. "Oh, fine," she gave up. "Hysteria is one of the bloodiest Semblances known on Remnant," she said.
"I'll keep that in mind," he said simply. "How do you activate yours?"
"I can't," she said as they kept moving. "It goes on by itself."
"Can I think of it as bloodlust?"
Bloodtlust? she thought with lament. Never thought of it that way, but it works.
"Sure," she said.
Hallucination.
She hated it more than anything.
One moment she'd be somewhere, then she'd be in the next.
The second she'd come back, she was either happy or sad she missed an entire moment of her own life.
"Strange," the Cheshire Cat said. "You don't usually make friends. Nor make any at all."
"Friend?" she asked with a chuckle. "What makes you think he's a friend?"
"'Tis the butterflies in your stomach," said the Cheshire. "'Tis the smile," his voice continued to fill with mirth and got louder every sentence. "The mirth! You obviously love the boy!"
"I-I do not!" she rejected the idea. Though she couldn't help but feel-
"The red stain upon your cheeks say differently," he added. "'Tis a blush which roses rise."
"S-stop thi-this!"
"'Tis a stutter, reveal a mutter. A mutter reveal a definite truth."
"That doesn't even rhyme!"
"Continued denial only reaches the final."
"That makes no sense."
"Rejection is worse than projection."
"Projections?"
"'Tis a question you only know, Alice."
"I would suspect it a crush, only letting it blow itself away in the wind after a matter of time," she tried.
"A man once said he suspected God to be a clock maker, based on the fact that life is literally a time."
"What are you getting at?" she asked annoyed.
"I simply say, 'It is not a clock. 'Tis a neverending gear.'"
Her eyes widened, her mouth agape.
"So you finally see logic over madness," he said.
"I am not mad!" she returned.
"No," the Cheshire agreed. "No. I am mad. You see the logic spilling over the madness. Like a waterfall over cliff."
She tilted her head. "You...you actually have logic?"
The cat's head removed itself and grew three sizes. Its body disappeared - leaving a head-only, constant-grinning cat, unfortunately. "I would say, I have layers of demeanor at your disposal," it almost whispered.
"My disposal?"
"My, my, milady," he said slyly. "My demeanors are yours to command." He literally disappeared, his wispy trail disappearing into her chest, just above her heart. "Use it wisely," a smaller version said before disappearing completely into the stream into which fell into her heart.
"Alice?"
"Yes?" she asked immediately. She knew to act instantly upon questioned after a hallucination to avoid confusion for the inquirer.
"You okay?" he asked with hands on her shoulders - she only realized. "You seemed dazed for a moment. We finished the match and class is over."
"I-I'm fine." The entire 45 minutes in a five minute bickering session with a bloody cat?!
"Well, do you want to get a drink. School is a half day today."
Hmm, she thought. That's not a bad idea. Almost like a da-
"Sure," she cut herself off.
"Also," he said as the two walked away towards the cafeteria (or wherever he was bringing her). "I'd like to talk about your Failsafe. You looked pretty badass out there."
She stiffened and stopped. Her eyes widening wider than in the hallucination.
"What's wrong?"
"I used Hysteria again?" she asked, now slumping and walking ahead. He had to put a skip in his step or a small jog to keep up.
"What's wrong?" he asked once more. "It was awesome. You really sicced those Beowulves, and that Spider Den! Ooh!" he shivered, almost audibly. "I hate spiders."
"As do I," Alice responded, trying to regain her stoicism.
"Then how did you kill them so easily?"
"Hysteria re-"
"Ooh!" he cut her off. "Let me guess; You blindfold yourself with that white fog around you!"
"No-"
"Or is it just that you don't care! That's coo-"
"Orion Serenade Belte, I swear I will dissect you personally if you do not let me speak," she spat.
"S-sorry...h-hey! How did you know my middle name?!"
"I didn't," she said. "'Tis a guess. Now, would you be so kind as to offer me lunch?" she gestured to the cafeteria door in front of the two.
"S-sure...and...I'm sorry for being an idiot," he apologized. "Could you tell me what it was, then?"
"I forgive you," she responded. Her cheeks reddened. She never openly forgave someone, let alone did it in the first place. Her cheeks returned to white instantly. "Anyways, Hysteria removed all emotion from me, driving me to kill my enemy rather than be afraid of it."
"That's not good," he said instantly.
"'Tis my Semblance Failsafe," she remarked. "I cannot change it."
"No, I mean," he sighed. "I mean, it's not good to not fear your opponent."
"Why?" she asked as the two ordered their meal. "One Rocky Road, please."
He threw a few dollars and ordered. "One Neapolitan, please."
After a few moments, they turned to a table - glad in their right minds that they actually had ice cream for lunch. "So," she gestured to his food as he dug into it hungrily - like a starved dog - and said, "You were saying."
"Ah, yes," he said after swallowing the chocolate side of the Neapolitan - not all of it, mind you. "I meant it's not good to not fear your enemy. Fearing your enemy is number one in all books."
"Not all of them."
"Who?" he asked curiously.
She pointed to herself.
He began to laugh. "How ironic!"
Noticing why he laughed (having been copied from the forest when he pointed to himself on not knowing about the Hysteria Failsafe Semblance), she gave out a hearty laugh.
Now that was just stunning, he thought. More so than her usual stoic side she shows. Oh, what am I thinking? I'm no match for whoever is probably falling head over heels for her. I won't say I'm the only one, that.
"Well," he recovered from their bout of laughter. "You should always know your enemy-"
"I do, I do," she retorted, though a smile was evident on her face.
"I know you do," he said with his equally playful smile. "But, what I mean is, their intelligence. Their ability. Even their damn packs should be regarded. Their strategies! No Grimm is without intelligence!" he taught her.
"Interesting," she said. "I always used to think that Grimm were unintelligible."
"Come," he simply said after finishing the last bite of his ice cream, she already having done so in the last five minutes.
The Library.
She never thought she'd been in this part of a school for a while.
He dragged her through other quiet students and sat her down in a chair. He went missing in between the bookshelves and returned almost immediately.
"Here," he said, opening a large book. "Read the first line."
She looked at him curiously before reading the line of text.
"You are as only as smart as your opponent."
"This doesn't make sense," she said. "What if you had several opponents? What then?"
"The less smart each of them are." He turned to a new page. "Hmm, it's gotta be here somewhere..."
She watched him for a moment, tilted head, and just basked in his view. His face was perfect, mind you, she thought. Maybe we could be thought of as-
"Here," he said, slamming a finger down on the book. "This says-"
The two continued to secretly love each other's presence without telling them. Occasionally an unnoticed blush would reach either's cheeks, the usual laughter would quietly sputter from the two. If anything, Alice would eventually realize that she'd have to control these demeanors she acquired, as the Cheshire Cat would control it by default until her realization.
Alice Bedlam finally retired to her room after a long day at school. It wasn't bad at all, as she was with Orion.
She walked through the room, ignored the other three for a while, and plopped onto the springy bed. She bounced a little ways before the bed was satisfied.
"Where were you?" Ricky, her team leader, asked. "You're usually here before any of us, face down, and sleeping."
"Yes," Sarah L. Erra, her teammate, asked. "Where were you? After fourth period, you kind of upped and disappeared."
Alice turned over on her bed, face up, as the two watched an unusual smile appear on her face. Not one either have ever seen before on a girl who had never smiled before. It fits her, the two surmised. "With a friend," she said.
The two looked at each other before smiling. "A friend, eh?" Ricky asked. "Who is this friend, I might ask?" he said in her Forgotten Era Old English accent Alice usually succumbed to.
"Curiosity consumes me on the fact you made a friend outside of our team," she copied Ricky as best she could.
"Orion," she said with mirth. "We went to lunch and had a bit of ice cream," she said with an audible pause of a short chuckle (amazing her friends of her fluttering laughter). "Then we went to the library so he could lecture me on how to properly kill Grimm as I had no fear of them."
"Orion?" asked Ricky. "Of team SNOY?"
"Had?" asked Sarah. "Past tense?"
"He said that the fear of your enemy causes you to be more cautious in attacking them," she said as she rolled over a little to face the both of them. On her side, she continued. "And yes," she confirmed. "Orion S. Belte of team Snowy."
Ricky smiled as Sarah looked back with her equal grin. "I ship it," she said.
"As do I," he agreed. "What do you think, Neo?"
Neo smiled before signing to him.
He let out a huge laughter fit. "Haha!" he yelled. "Tied Destiny! That's cute!"
"T-tied..." Alice tried to repeat with a blush. "D-des-destiny!"
"Yes!" laughed Sarah. The entire team did know sign language. Alice then switched demeanors entirely.
"If you do not stop, I daresay I will rip your throats out." Hearing only Neo's fits of laughter through the springs in her bed, Alice turned towards her. "And I will chop your hands off and give them Miss Xiao Long of Second Year Team RWBY, do you understand?"
Neo stopped instantly let her head droop a little.
Ricky changed the subject. "About that," he said a Neo's raising head. "When are you going to apologize to her for nearly killing her. Surely, you're going to have to tell them sometime you were just acting to be with Roman for money from your Mercenary Sect, correct?"
She nodded with contempt with herself. She'd had to say sometime that it was just orders with some kind of apology. She really did not need an older girl - by a year, at that - trying to kill her every possible second. She signed an idea to him.
"Yin?" Ricky asked. "Good idea. Hey, Alice?"
"Yes," she asked, looking up to him expectantly.
"I need you to talk to Yin tomorrow. It's Saturday, and I think he'd be dying just to-" she shot him a glare. He sweat dropped. "Look, I need you to get him to talk to Yin. We can probably get rid of Neo's problem that way. Explain the situation to him, and then we can get to take it up with Yang, okay? Can you handle that?"
"Most definitely," Alice said with no malice. Ha, she thought. Cheshire Cat induced! Oh, wait, she continued. The hallucination! I can control my own freaking demeanors! Yeah!
With that - and its being 8 at night - she fell asleep, eventually her team following in her wake.
-= *End of Chapter 3* =-
Hoped you like this new chapter! Originally, it was going to be chapter five, but seeing as during this stupid power outage, chapter four - in the making - was deleted!
With that, I wish you all a good day with this new OC in mind!
I was about as Mad as a Hatter!
Now, for the love of God, let the next Fanfiction begin!